The daughter of embattled Emmanuel Kwesi Dawood, Central Regional Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress on Wednesday, narrated the ordeal she went through at the hands of her father, to a Cape Coast Circuit Court.
Dawood had on Wednesday, October 13, pleaded not guilty to defilement, incest, illegal abortion and assault and was remanded into police custody by the Court presided over by Mrs Dorinda Smith Arthur, but managed to secure a bail at a higher Court, last Thursday.
During a cross-examination by the lawyer of the accused who pleaded anonymity on Wednesday, the victim identified the accused as his biological father who had several consistent sexual encounters with her.
According to her, in the year 2019, her father lured her into his matrimonial home and informed her that he wanted to replace his love for her mother with her since their love could not last long.
The girl said, she declined a proposal to date him, but the accused ignored and forcibly had sexual intercourse with her in his matrimonial room at Agona-Swedru and revealed that their last sexual act was in the month of June, 2021 at Agona-Swedru.
“After the act, my father promised to send me abroad only if I did not disclose the ordeal to anyone, but if I did, he would make my life very miserable.
“In 2020, I got pregnant but my father took me to Atta Mensah who is his friend to abort the pregnancy and I informed the school counsellor about it,” she said.
The girl stated that when the accused heard she had informed the school counsellor, he attacked and subjected her to severe beatings, but she managed to escape.
The case had been adjourned to Tuesday, November 2 for continuation.
The Prosecutor, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Daniel Gazor, had told the Court that the accused was reported by Ms Mavis Ayitey, mother of the victim, for allegedly having sex with his daughter multiple times, leading to a pregnancy.
He was alleged to have contacted a quack doctor, who performed an abortion on the girl, Prosecutor said.
ASP Gazor said a petition submitted by the victim’s mother to the Central Regional Police Command, said Dawood had allegedly engaged in the act since the girl was 15 years.
According to the petition, the victim, who could not bear the pain of the father’s actions anymore, on Friday, August 24, 2021, confided in her school’s Housemaster, the Prosecutor said.
The Housemaster then invited the girl’s grandmother to the school and informed her about her ordeal and they reported the case to the police, ASP Gazor, added.
