John Dramani Mahama, the Flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has claimed that Martin Dele, Chief Executive Officer of the defunct DKM Microfinance, is a financier of the Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia campaign.

According to the former president, this information vindicates him after the NPP accused him in 2016 of being the brain behind the defunct company that has been tagged as a Ponzi scheme.

Claim:

Speaking at a campaign event in the Bono Region, Mahama said that after members of the NPP accused him of being behind DKM, it has now turned out that the owner of the defunct microfinance institution is a bona fide member of the ruling NPP.

“You remember back in 2016 when I was president, the NPP party and MPs held a press conference and falsely accused me of being the owner of DKM. Recently, the vice president Bawumia visited Nandom and was seen in the company of the real owner of DKM.

“His (the owner of DKM) uncle, former interior minister Ambrose Derry, admitted that the owner of DKM is a member of the NPP and one of the financiers of the vice president. The lies they spread about me have now been exposed,” he said in Twi.

He added, “The owner of DKM is actually affiliated with the NPP. The money that was embezzled is what he is now giving to Bawumia for his campaign. Lies take the lead, but in the end, the truth will always prevail.”

Explanation:

In two major but separate incidents, the affiliation of Matin Dele to the New Patriotic Party (NPP) came to the fore.

First, the campaign team of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia denied claims that Dele was a member of the NPP, and as well, a financier of their campaign. On the other hand, Ambrose Dery, a former Minister of the Interior, confirmed the political standing of the defunct DKM owner, contradicting the earlier point that he was not an NPP member.

It is worth noting that Dery is believed to be an uncle of Martin Dele.

Krobea Kwabena Asante, a member of Bawumia’s campaign team, stated, in reply to the claim by an NDC member, that, “Eric Adjei, get this straight, your lies won’t change the fact that the DKM hoax happened under your watch and you sat there aloof without saving customers’ deposits as a regime.

"Now to expose your lies. Martin Dele is not a member of NPP and is also not part of our campaign team. Yesterday, Dr. Bawumia visited Naa Prof. Edmund Delle Chiir VIII, Paramount Chief of Nandom, and Martin, a royal and nephew of the Overlord, was at the Palace and presented a gift to the boss from his uncle who was on the skin.

"Today you call Martin, who is an NDC guy, a thief? After all he did for you, ERIC, in Bono Region? Is that how politics has changed you, my brother, ERIC? You don’t know him again? Wow.”

Ambrose Dery, on the other hand, later also explained the circumstances surrounding how Dele was the one who presented the smock to Dr. Bawumia.

"He is a Ghanaian and has the right to vote. He has been a member of the NPP in the Nandom constituency since before 2016 and continues to be a member now…

“He is a member of the royal family and was presenting that smock on behalf of the chief who had asked that it be given in the presence of all of us and I want people to stop this whole business. He is not part of Alhaji Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s campaign team but he is a member of the NPP,” Dery emphasised.

About the DKM scam:

The DKM scandal was about a scam allegedly orchestrated by some microfinance institutions in the Brong Ahafo Region, including DKM, which led to residents losing their investments running into several millions of Ghana cedis.

The scandal led to the arrest of managing director of DKM microfinance, Dr. Martin Delle, and three others for fraudulent breach of trust.

Delle was released on GH¢80 million bail while the others, including the Chief Executive Officer of God Is Love Fan Club, Nortey Noel, and Managing Director of Jastar Motors, Charles Asum, had their bond set at GH¢50 million and GH¢20 million respectively.

The victims stated that the financial institutions convinced them of a 50 percent interest offer on investments in three months. Based on the information, a number of people were said to have deposited various sums of money in the suspects’ companies.

However, on the maturity dates, the clients found the offices of the suspects locked when they went to collect their money.

In times past, former President John Dramani Mahama and his wife, Lordina Mahama, were accused of being behind DKM but there remains no evidence to support the claim.

Conclusion:

While there have been two versions of the linkage of the CEO of defunct DKM Microfinance, there appears to be some truth in the fact that Martin Dele is affiliated to the NPP in a way.

With that aside, the claim by John Dramani Mahama that Dele is not only an NPP member (corroborating what Ambrose Dery said), but also a financier of the campaign of the sitting vice president cum flagbearer of the NPP is not accurate.

While there exists no other supporting evidence or otherwise about the role of Martin Dele in the whole NPP discussions, it is not true that Dery admitted that the former CEO of the defunct company finances Bawumia’s campaign.

As it stands now, the facts that are available only point Martin Dele to some affiliation with the NPP, and not because he is a financier of the campaign of the man who leads the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Mahamudu Bawumia.

Verdict:

John Dramani Mahama’s claim that Ambrose Dery admitted that Martin Dele is a financier of the campaign of Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia is NOT true.

TWI NEWS

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