The highlife musician Gyedu-Blay Ambolley has apologized to the hiplife musician Okyeame Kwame over allegations that the latter received money shared among musicians.
This comes three years after he alleged that the rapper received a portion of the 2 million allocated by the government to the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA).
Ambolley apologized on LinkedIn, clarifying that he was'mistaken' and that the former president of MUSIGA, Bice Osei Kuffour aka Obour, did not personally loan any government funds to Okyeame Kwame.
He acknowledged that his claims that the 'Made In Ghana' singer did not return the money he received were also false.
Obour did not provide Okyeame Kwame with a personal loan using MUSIGHA funds. To support artists and enable them to access loans, MUSIGHA engaged into an arrangement with Midland bank and pledged collateral," he wrote.
Mr. Ambolley added, "Okyeame Kwame only utilized the opportunity to apply for a loan from Midland bank, which he was granted."
He also mentioned that the Hiplife musician has repaid the loan in full.
Ambolley added, "To the extent that my earlier statements may have harmed Okyeame Kwame's reputation, I apologize and state that the errors in my statements were not made maliciously."
Background
In February 2020, musician Gyedu-Blay Ambolley claimed that only a handful of musicians in the country benefited from the GH2 million that the government granted to MUSIGA.
In an interview with 3FM, he stated that the former president of MUSIGA, Bice Osei Kufuor, who received the money at the time, was the one who distributed it to musicians close to him.
"When that money arrived, Obour distributed 50,000 to those surrounding him." He asserted, "I know what I am saying and I am not making anything up."
Okyeame Kwame, however, has threatened to sue the veteran musician if he does not apologize within 72 hours.
However, in a separate interview on 3FM, Ambolley stated that he was not prepared to apologize within 72 hours, and that he required a week to conduct further research and get back to Okyeame Kwame with either an apology or the facts.
According to him, something nefarious occurred when the money was given to MUSIGA.
However, he subsequently stated on Joy Prime to Ibrahim Ben-Bako that he does not need the time to prove his allegations because the accountability would either validate his claims or Okyeame Kwame's.
Okyeame Later, Kwame sued Ambolley for libel.
According to a press release issued by Ambolley's attorneys, the parties settled the lawsuit "through a court-connected mediation process" and issued an apology as part of the settlement.
GJ/0792/2020 IN RE: Kwame Nsiah Apau v. Gyedu-Blay Ambolley During an interview on 3FM on the 22nd of February 2020 regarding the use of some funds donated by the Government of Ghana to the Musicians Association of Ghana (MUSIGHA), I was mistaken about some of the details of the matter, particularly with regard to my colleague musician and MUSIGHA member Kwame Nsiah Apau, also known as Okyeame Kwame. I would like to correct and clarify these facts as follows: Obour did not extend a personal loan to Okyeame Kwame using MUSIGHA funds. MUSIGHA engaged into a partnership with Midland bank and provided security/collateral for the partnership in order to assist artists in obtaining loans. Okyeame Kwame only utilized the opportunity to apply for a loan from Midland bank, which he was granted. Since then, he has informed me that he has repaid the bank in full. Insofar as my previous statements may have harmed Okyeame Kwame's reputation, I apologize and state that the errors in my statements were not made maliciously.