Host of Good Evening Ghana on Metro TV, Paul Adom-Otchere claims former Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, Cecilia Abena Dapaah owns only $200,000 of the millions of cash she had stashed in her home, which have now been stolen.
According to Mr. Adom-Otchere, an amendment to the charge sheet of the theft case currently before an Accra Circuit Court indicates that the rest of the monies belonged to her husband and her late brother.
The ace broadcaster claimed the former minister, in her complaint, told the police that her brother who died last year gave an amount of $800,000 to their mother to keep on his behalf.
However, following his death last year, their mother, with the consent of her surviving siblings, decided to entrust the cash to Ms. Cecilia Dapaah.
Mr. Adom-Otchere claimed the former minister kept the money together with an amount of $200,000 belonging to her and an amount of €300,000 belonging to her husband, Daniel Osei Kuffour in her room where they were stolen.
“The $800,000 is for her brother, who died unfortunately at age 60. Before the brother died, he had given this amount of money to their mother that their mother should keep that money because he was going to use it for an enterprise.
When the man died, Cecilia Dapaah’s mother and called her and said ‘your brother’s money, the one he gave me for the purpose of building a house is still with me. I think I should hand it over to you for safekeeping’. So Cecilia took the money with the consent of the other siblings”.
He narrated further, “Her mother who gave her the money also unfortunately passes. So when her mother died, this was still with her. So once this was tempered with, how was she going to inform her other brothers that ‘our brother’s money that was given to me has been stolen’? She was going to suffer a family integrity crisis hence, the report to the police”.
His claim makes it the second attempt to explain away the scandal since it broke last week.
The first attempt was made by the Municipal Chief Executive for Ga West, Clement Nii Lamptey Wilkinson.
Mr. Lamptey Wilkinson had suggested that the monies were funeral donations.
But many rubbished his claims.
Cecilia Abena Dapaah resigned from her position as Sanitation Minister following revelation that she stashed millions of cash in foreign and local currencies in her Abelemkpe residence.
The revelation sparked public outrage with many calling for her head.
She has since resigned and is under investigation.
