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British High Commissioner: ‘Instigating a coup in Ghana?’
Mawuse Oliver Barker Vormawor, an apologist of the Opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), was on 12th May, 2022, arrested by the police and charged with careless and inconsiderate driving and non- observance of road markings.
Barker Vormawor is again an ‘acclaimed’ strategist and convener of #FixTheCountry Movement. The FixTheCountry movement claims to be using street protests to ‘force’ the Government to fix myriad of ‘contentious’ issues the country is facing .
He pleaded not guilty before a Magistrate court and was granted bail in the sum of GHC 30,000 with two sureties to be justified.
Barker Vormawor was arrested together with other motor traffic offenders during police patrol to check indiscipline and other motor traffic offences. Two other offending drivers who also appeared on the same day in court with him (Barker Vormawor) pleaded guilty and were sentenced to a fine of GH¢300 each.
The arrest and prosecution of Barker Vormawor seemed to have ‘fascinated’ the new British High Commissioner to Ghana, Harriet Thompson.
So, on Tuesday, 17th May 2022, the British High Commissioner tweeted:”Oliver Barker Vormawor, covener of #FixTheCountry movement, arrested again, I understand for a motoring offence on his way to court. I’ll be interested to see where this goes…”
Readers, remember? Barker Vormawor is currently being prosecuted on a charge of treason felony.
His first arrest and prosecution was in relation to a social media post in which he threatened to stage a coup if the E-levy Bill, then before Parliament, was passed into law.
According to the police, Barker Vormawor’s social media post, “contained a clear statement of intent with a possible will to execute a coup in his declaration of intent to subvert the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana.”
And without any provocation from the Ghana Armed Forces, Barker Vormawor described the Ghana Army as “useless” in his social media post.
According to Wikipedia, a coup d’etat (French), often shortened to ‘a coup’ in English or ‘overthrow’, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers.
Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, rebel group, military or by a dictator.
Ghana’s Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr George Akuffo Dampare, was ‘incensed’ by the British High Commissioner’s tweet, thus, describing it as “misguided, unwarranted and biased.”
In a ‘hot’ statement issued in response to Harriet Thompson’s tweet, the IGP said:”Ordinarily, the Ghana Police Service would not have responded to comments such as yours, obviously made from either a biased or uninformed position.
“However, we have learnt from previous painful experience that it has not been helpful to ignore such misguided, unwarranted and biased comments, intended to tarnish the reputation of the Ghana Police Service and that of our country.
“For the moment, we would recommend a Ghanaian saying, that might guide you in your diplomatic engagements; ‘di wo fie asem’, meaning – ‘learn to keep within the limits of what concerns you’ .
“What is more; we consider your tweet a violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961), which enjoins diplomatic missions not to interfere in the internal affairs of their host countries.”
Virtually lending support to the IGP’s statement, many Ghanaians have ‘chastised’ the British High Commissioner. For instance, Professor Ransford Gyampo, a political scientist and a senior lecturer at the University of Ghana says:”Ghana must be strict in calling out ignorant and low grade diplomats from other countries who unnecessarily poke their noses into the internal affairs of our country, which does not concern them.”
According to Professor Gyampo:”Ghanaian diplomats in other countries do not meddle in the internal affairs of their host countries, and I cannot fathom why it is the opposite in Ghana.
“Foreign diplomats who are of no relevance in their home countries and posted to Africa as punishment, cannot come and dictate to us.
“They should talk about the ills in their home countries first and confine themselves to their role as spies.”
Professor Gyampo added:”The fact that we receive aid doesn’t mean we must be puppets and tolerate diplomatic buffoonery.
“They exploit our natural resources and pay us pittance. They mine our gold and pay us only five per cent! They take our oil and pay us about 13 per cent!”
Professor Baffuor Agyeman-Duah, a governance expert and a former United Nations Senior Adviser shares similar views with Professor Gyampo. He also says;”we are a sovereign nation and there are diplomatic requirements when a nation engages another nation. When they send their diplomats, they are guided by the general convention.
“What some of our diplomatic officers here do, is to unduly poke their noses in our internal affairs.”
Others who “defend” the British High Commissioner, however, say the IGP should have conveyed his concerns about the tweet, to the British High Commissioner, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration “and that the IGP went overboard and overstepped his limits.”
The “defendants” of the British High Commissioner claim that her comments were so “innocuous” that she did not deserve any reprimand “because she was only seeking information that could have been given to her without turning it into a ‘battle’.”
Questions being asked by some critics of the British High Commissioner include:”Has the new British High Commissioner been posted to Ghana to instigate a coup, using Barker Vormawor-led #FixTheCountry movement ?
“As a brand new High Commissioner in Ghana, why is Harriet Thompson ‘so much in love’ with somebody who has clearly stated that he will stage a coup to overthrow the Government of the Republic of Ghana?
“There are a lot of motor traffic offenders who have been arrested and are facing prosecution in the country; why is the British woman singling out Barker Vormawor for mention and attention ?
“With the E-levy passed into law, is the British High Commissioner encouraging Barker Vormawor to operationalise his intents of staging a coup and with covert support?
Thompson, British
“Is the British High Commissioner not very much aware that the American Embassy in Ghana played a major role in overthrowing Dr Kwame Nkrumah’s regime in 1966?”
Readers, can you also ‘smell’ ‘anything’ in the tweet of the British High Commissioner?
Contact email WhatsApp/ of author:
asmahfrankg@gmail.com (0505556179)
By G. Frank Asmah
On Sunday, October 11, 2026, it was the turn of Ghanaian Catholics in Finland to lead the singing in the church service of the African Catholic Chaplaincy in Finland (ACCF).
It was indeed a spirit-filled feeling for worshippers present. And for the Ghanaian migrants, the occasion also brought back to them memories of church services in their home country, Ghana.
The ACCF has a roster for each country/community to sing from time to time. Next Sunday will be the turn of the Nigerian community. Other communities that usually sing are the Kenyan/Tanzanian community, the Cameroonian, the Ugandan, group, etc.
A powerful religious experience
The mass services of the Chaplaincy usually give a powerful religious experience and a display of cultural diversity, especially in occasions such as when the Bishop of Helsinki, Bishop Raimo Goyarrola, celebrated mass with the Chaplaincy on Pentecost Day, May 24, 2026.
There was a similar time of spiritual joy last month (September 27, 2026) when Emeritus Bishop Teemu Sippo, former Bishop of Helsinki, visited the Chaplaincy. Bishop Teemu was the main celebrant, assisted by the Chaplain, Reverend Father Thomas Otieno.
Last Sunday, Reverend Father Bernard Sor, a Ghanaian Catholic priest based in Austria, was the main celebrant in the mass service where he performed a rite of baptism. Fr Bernard had celebrated mass a few months ago when he visited his sister and her husband in Helsinki. 
All these well-attended religious occasions indeed leave lasting memories. The homilies (peaching) by the priests usually emphasize religious tenets such as the importance of loving and serving God in truth, existing in peace with our fellow humans to promote unity in diversity, etc.
Unity in diversity and a colourful display of cultures
The African Chaplaincy church services usually produce impressive displays of diverse cultures from different parts of Africa and elsewhere. The events are often spiced by rich cultural displays of dances and colourful attires which are a delight to watch.
On special occasions, members of the Ghanaian Catholic community, in their gay and colourful kente attire and with adowa dance and music, usually lead the procession into the church. Other communities such as the Cameroonian, Nigerian, Kenyan and Tanzanian as well as Sudanese/South Sudanese groups also put up well-choreographed performances from their cultures.
The African Catholic Chaplaincy in Finland
The African Chaplaincy was founded on June 4, 2017, which was a Pentecost Sunday, in a Pontifical High Mass celebrated by Monsignor Emeritus Sippo S.C.I., the then Bishop of Helsinki, at the St. Mary’s Catholic Parish Church in Helsinki.
The Chaplaincy was created by Bishop Teemu in collaboration with the Diocesan body when they detected a great flocking of African immigrants to Finland, the majority of whom were Catholics. This was to give the immigrants a possibility to integrate into the Finnish society by worshiping as Catholics and in their African cultural identity.
The responsibility of the Chaplaincy was given by Bishop Teemu to Father Dr Leonard Wobilla Shwei, who is thus the first Chaplain and ably led the Chaplaincy. He was succeeded a few years ago by Father Thomas Otieno, who continues to move the Chaplaincy forward. Thank you!
GHANA MATTERS column appears fortnightly. Written in simple, layman’s terms, it concentrates on matters about Ghana and beyond. It focuses on everyday life issues relating to the social, cultural, economic, religious, political, health, sports, youth, gender, etc. It strives to remind us all that Ghana comes first. The column also takes a candid look at the meanings and repercussions of our actions, especially those things we take for granted or even ignore. There are key Ghanaian values we should uphold rather than disregard with impunity. We should not overlook the obvious. We need to search for the hidden or deeply embedded values and try to project them.
With Dr Perpetual Crentsil
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She did not find out he was cheating. She found out he was drowning.
It was two weeks after their beautiful wedding. The jollof was still in the fridge. A loan officer called her number-not his-and politely asked, “Madam, please tell your husband to pay his overdue loan. We have been calling him.”
That was how she discovered her new husband had entered their marriage with a hidden debt of over GH¢ 40,000. No cheating. No other woman. Just a financial secret.
And that is how many Ghanaian marriages begin to die. Not with a shout, but with a secret alert on a phone.
We prepare for the wedding. We do not prepare for the wallet.
What is money honesty?
Let me define it simply. Money honesty is not that you both earn the same. It is that you both know the same. It is the ability to sit down and say without fear:
“This is how much I earn.”
“This is how much I owe.”
“This is how I was raised to see money.”
“This is what scares me about money.”
Financial transparency is not about control. It is about clarity. You cannot build trust on top of secrets.
Many couples tell me, “Counsellor, we love each other, love will handle money.” I always answer, “Love is the car, but money honesty is the fuel. Love without honesty cannot move.”
How To Buy Your Marriage Insurance Today – My 5-Step Protocol
If you are engaged, newly married, or even 20 years in marriage, you can still fix this. At Counsellor Prince & Associates Consult—CPAC, this is what I give couples:
Step 1: The 90-Minute Money Naked Session.
No phones, no blame. Each partner writes down on paper: Monthly income, monthly debts, monthly family obligations, savings, and your biggest money fear. Then you exchange papers. Read it. Don’t react for 24 hours. Just absorb.
Step 2: Create OUR Money, YOUR Money, My Money.
You need three pots. OUR money for rent, food, school fees, utilities, properties, and the like— joint contribution. YOUR money and MY money—a small agreed allowance no one questions. This stops the feeling of being controlled.
Step 3: The No-Secret Debt Rule.
Agree from today: No new loan, no new hire purchase, no new family financial commitment above GHS 500 without telling each other first. Not permission, but information.
Step 4: Talk About Your Money Personality.
Are you a Spender or a Saver? Are you Risky or Safe? Most Ghanaian marriages are a Spender married to a Saver. Neither is wrong. But if you don’t understand your partner’s personality, you will call his saving “stinginess” and her spending “wastefulness.”
Step 5: Do a Monthly 30-Minute Money Date
Not an argument date. Light, with tea. “How did we do this month? What worried you? What should we plan for next month?” Couples who do this divorce far less.
My Final Word
Before you say “I Do” at the altar, have pre-marital counselling and also have the money talk on the sofa.
Ask your partner:
“If I lost my job today, how long can we survive?”
“What debt are you bringing into this marriage?”
“How much do you send to your family monthly and will that continue?”
If he or she gets angry that you asked, don’t get married yet. A person who is angry about accountability will be abusive about money.
Marriage insurance is not bought at Star Assurance or Enterprise. It is bought in honest conversations when no one is watching.
The wedding costs one day. The marriage costs a lifetime. Don’t enter a lifetime contract and covenant with hidden costs.
You can still insure your marriage today.
Source:
Counselor Prince Offei, CPAC’s founder, is a leading Mental Health Professional, Marriage Counsellor, Author, ADR Expert/Arbitrator, and Spectator Newspaper Columnist. He writes on relationships, marriage, parenting, special needs support, and their connection to mental health. For therapy, counselling, or enquiries, contact Counselor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC) in Accra on 0559850604 / 0551428486.
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