NPP General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has announced plans to challenge the conviction of its Ashanti Regional Chairman, Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, insisting that the High Court’s judgment was legally unsound and unsupported by the evidence presented during the trial.

Speaking at a press conference at the party’s headquarters in Accra, General Secretary Justin Kodua Frimpong said the NPP fully respects the authority of the courts but believes the verdict was fundamentally flawed and would be challenged through the appellate process.

He said the party’s legal team had already initiated steps to appeal the decision.

“Our Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to challenge a judicial decision through the appellate process. That is the path we are pursuing, and we are confident justice will ultimately prevail,” Mr Kodua Frimpong stated.

The NPP General Secretary argued that the prosecution failed to establish the essential elements of the offences for which Chairman Wontumi was convicted.

According to him, it was never disputed during the trial that the mining concession held by Akonta Mining Limited had been lawfully acquired.

He maintained that the prosecution did not produce credible evidence to prove that Chairman Wontumi had unlawfully assigned or transferred the company’s mineral rights in violation of the Minerals and Mining Act.

Mr Kodua Frimpong contended that the conviction was based largely on assumptions and inferences rather than proof beyond reasonable doubt, describing the judgment as a miscarriage of justice.

“The conviction rested on assumptions and inferences which, in our view, cannot satisfy the criminal standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt,” he said.

The NPP also accused the government of pursuing selective justice, alleging that politically exposed persons affiliated with the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) had not faced the same level of scrutiny over allegations of illegal mining.

Mr Kodua Frimpong questioned the status of petitions and allegations involving some NDC officials and Members of Parliament who had publicly been linked to illegal mining activities.

He argued that the government could not cite Chairman Wontumi’s conviction as evidence of its commitment to fighting illegal mining while similar allegations against others remained unresolved.

According to him, the rule of law must be applied fairly and consistently without regard to political affiliation.

The General Secretary further urged the government to focus on what he described as more pressing national challenges, including illegal mining, recurrent flooding, insecurity and the growing threat of terrorism within the West African sub-region.

He said Ghanaians expected the government to prioritise those issues instead of engaging in what the party believes are politically motivated prosecutions.

Mr Kodua Frimpong assured supporters that the NPP would continue to stand firmly behind Chairman Wontumi throughout the legal process.

He maintained that the party believes its Ashanti Regional Chairman had been wrongfully convicted and described him as “a political prisoner.”

The announcement follows Monday’s judgment by the High Court in Accra, presided over by Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, which convicted Chairman Wontumi on two mining-related offences.

The court sentenced him to 20 years’ imprisonment for assigning mineral rights granted to Akonta Mining Limited to Michael Gyedu Ayisi and Henry Okum without obtaining the prior approval of the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources.

He was also sentenced to another 20 years for purposely facilitating an unlicensed mining operation on the company’s Samreboi concession in the Western Region, contrary to Section 99(2)(b) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), as amended by the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 995).

The court ordered that the two custodial sentences run concurrently, meaning Chairman Wontumi will serve a 20-year prison term.

In addition to the custodial sentence, the court imposed fines of GH¢120,000 on each count against Chairman Wontumi. Failure to pay the fines will result in an additional three-year prison term on each count.

Akonta Mining Limited was also fined GH¢180,000 on each of the two counts after being found guilty of assigning mineral rights without ministerial approval and facilitating an unlicensed mining operation.