The Parliamentary Vetting Committee has created an environment conducive to transparency by allowing social media activist Oliver Barker-Vormawor to appear with his lawyers to respond to allegations of bribes from ministerial nominees. Although he clarified the misrepresentation on social media and further apologized, it was a healthy move for the committee.
The Member of Parliament for Lower Manya Krobo, Hon. Ebenezer Oklatey Terlabi, expressed this on the Adekyee Mu Nsem morning show on Ahotor 92.3 FM, hosted by Citizen Kofi Owusu in Accra. He believes that the opinion expressed through the media that the National Democratic Congress (NDC) majority in parliament is under siege by the political strategy of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) is unfounded.
Hon. Terlabi stated that the majority can rise to the challenge and that there is a need to maintain the political culture of cohesion to build consensus. He believes the NDC majority is up to the task, while the NPP is merely trying to score political points. He emphasized that the real parliamentary business in the house is where the NDC will rise to the task and win all arguments to reset the country.
He opined that the NPP is still struggling from the huge defeat the party experienced in the 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections. As a party with a majority in parliament, the NDC will work hard to bring peace and stability for national development.
Moving forward, social media activist Oliver Barker-Vormawor has apologized to Parliament’s Appointments Committee, stressing that his earlier remarks about alleged bribery were not meant to disparage its members. Barker-Vormawor, who had previously claimed that some committee members demanded bribes from ministerial nominees, explained that his comments were intended to highlight broader concerns about corruption and transparency, rather than directly accuse the committee.
His legal counsel, Nana Ato Dadzie, reinforced this clarification, stating that the activist’s post was an act of whistleblowing, not an attack on the committee’s integrity. The committee had summoned Barker-Vormawor to provide evidence for his claims, which he agreed to do.
Appearing before the Appointments Committee in Accra on Wednesday, January 29, Barker-Vormawor stated:
“I am saying here clearly that my post was not intended to disparage members of the committee, and I have not intended to say that members of this committee have received or demanded bribes from various individuals. At no point was my statement intended to communicate the same, and for those reasons, I apologize.”
He further explained why he had not deleted the post earlier, saying:
“The reason why I have left the post on was because I saw that the words had been twisted, and it became imperative for me to maintain the post in its original form so that, if questioned on it, reference could be made for verification.”
Barker-Vormawor added that he was willing to remove the post, signaling his commitment to resolving the issue amicably.
Nana Ato Dadzie, the lawyer for social media activist Oliver Barker-Vormawor, has vowed to uncover the individual responsible for publishing a fake bribery claim involving members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Appointments Committee. Mr. Dadzie had previously told the committee that the statement, which allegedly implicated his client in publishing claims that NDC members on the Appointments Committee were taking money in exchange for approving ministerial nominees, was false.
The allegation, which has been circulating within political circles, suggested that committee members were demanding money from nominees to secure their approval. Nana Ato Dadzie stressed the importance of getting to the bottom of the matter.
“Obviously we need to pursue this matter… It is in our interest to actually find out who published that,” Dadzie said.
Meanwhile, Barker-Vormawor has apologized to Parliament’s Appointments Committee, emphasizing that his earlier remarks about alleged bribery were never intended to tarnish the reputation of its members.
Appearing before the Appointments Committee in Accra on Wednesday, January 29, Barker-Vormawor stated:
“I am saying here clearly that my post was not intended to disparage members of the committee, and I have not intended to say that members of this committee have received or demanded bribes from various individuals. At no point was my statement intended to communicate the same, and for those reasons, I apologize.”
He also addressed why he had not deleted the post earlier, explaining:
“The reason why I have left the post on was because I saw that the words had been twisted, and it became imperative for me to maintain the post in its original form so that, if questioned on it, reference could be made for verification.”
Barker-Vormawor expressed his willingness to remove the post, signaling his commitment to resolving the issue amicably.
Story by: Alexander Kukah
