Dancehall musician Shatta Wale
Shatta Wale’s earlier response to a claim by road contractor Kennedy Acquah was rather defensive; one that was punctuated with a barrage of swear words as he unequivocally rationalized his actions.
“My boys went there and told everybody to stop work. If some of them were being stubborn and they were pushed, I didn’t ask anyone to beat anybody. I said they should go and stop the work so I meet the contractor,” he said.
“I am a taxpayer so I have every right to talk my mind if I see a problem,” the musician fumed with rage but later ate a humble pie as he rendered an unqualified apology.
“I want to say sorry to Kennedy for everything that happened,” a calm-looking Shatta Wale said in a video.
Kennedy Acquah had alleged that while constructing a road at Adjiringanor in Accra on Saturday, May 29, a livid Shatta Wale and his men besieged the area and expressed fury over why they did not extend the work on the road to his office. According to him, he suggested to Shatta Wale to contact the Urban Roads Department considering that they were working based on the contract the Urban Roads had given them but the musician did not heed.
He further alleged that Shatta Wale’s men who thronged the area assaulted him and some of his workers, adding that the police who came to the scene after videos of the incident went viral on social media were starstruck and only exchanged pleasantries with Shatta Wale.
But in a sharp rebuttal, Shatta Wale said he and his men would have been arrested by the police if they did anything untoward. He also claimed that the one in charge of the project apologized to him in his office after the incident, a claim that was vehemently refuted by Kennedy Acquah.
The turning point
The incident stoked conversation as a section of the public expressed their views. While some could not fathom why Shatta Wale would order the contractors to stop working, others mounted a spirited defence for the showbiz personality.
The medical report of Kennedy Acquah which surfaced on the internet on June 1, however, shaped the narrative. In the report sighted by GhanaWeb, the complainant visited the 37 Military Hospital on Tuesday, June 1, 2021.
Details on the medical report said, the victim (Kennedy Acquah) “sustained a painful face, right jaw, right aspect of neck and the right chest on examination…reddened eyes, bilaterally chest is clinically clear.”
It furthered that “Plan is to use analgesia for review in two days. X-rays of chest if pain persists.”
Kennedy Acquah subsequently filed a complaint against Shatta Wale at the East Legon Police Station. The Divisional Commander Kwame Gyasi is said to have confirmed to Graphic that the case had been reported at the police station indicating that Shatta Wale is to report to the police station in 24 hours.
Speaking to Graphic , Kennedy Acquah gave the musician a 24-hour ultimatum to apologize publicly, failure to do so would leave him with no option but to take legal actions against the musician.
“Shatta Wale is not above the law and he cannot just do anything he wants. I am not letting the issue rest until he comes out publicly to apologise to my project manager or be ready to face me in court. When the incident happened, I personally went to his house and ask that he comes to apologize to my project manager which he did but that alone is not enough I want him to do a live video and apologize for his misconduct,” Kennedy Acquah is quoted to have said on June 1.
The adherence to the caution was indeed swift. Clad in a black t-shirt, black pair of jeans trousers and two wristwatches and pearls to match, a sober Shatta Wale apologized for the altercation.
“The one in question is my dad, my friend, somebody that I always wanted to meet, it is so unfortunate things had to happen this way… I believe he will also find a place in his heart to forgive me. I just want to say I’m sorry,” Shatta Wale said in a video and later made a tweet.
A lot has happened, needless to explain or defend. Wish to apologize to everyone especially the contractor and Kennedy, let us work together to build our motherland, One Love!
— SHATTA WALE (@shattawalegh) June 1, 2021