The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has announced its decision to appeal the conviction of its Ashanti Regional Chairman, Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, describing the High Court's judgment as "fundamentally flawed.”
Addressing a press conference at the party’s headquarters in Accra yesterday, the General Secretary of the party, Justin Kodua Frimpong, said although the NPP respected the authority of the courts, it believed the conviction was not supported by evidence and should be overturned by a higher court.
He said the party's legal team had already begun the appellate process.
"Our Constitution guarantees every citizen the right to disagree with judicial decisions and to seek redress through the appellate process.
That is precisely what we intend to do," he stated.
Basis for appeal
Mr Kodua Frimpong contended that there was no evidence to support the offence for which Chairman Wontumi had been convicted.
According to him, it was not disputed during the trial that the NPP chairman had lawfully acquired his mineral concession.
He argued that the prosecution failed to produce evidence that Mr Antwi-Boasiako had assigned or transferred his mineral rights in breach of the law.
"The conviction rested on assumptions and inferences which, in our view, could not amount to proof beyond reasonable doubt," he said, and added that the party regarded the judgment as "a travesty of justice."
Allegations of selective prosecution
The NPP General Secretary also alleged that the prosecution reflected a pattern of selective justice, with political opponents being targeted while allegations involving persons associated with the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) were not being pursued with the same urgency.
He questioned what had become of petitions and allegations relating to some NDC officials and Members of Parliament who had publicly been accused of involvement in illegal mining.
Mr Kodua Frimpong further claimed that the government could not cite Chairman Wontumi's conviction as evidence of its commitment to combating illegal mining while, according to him, other allegations remained unresolved.
He maintained that justice should be applied fairly and consistently regardless of political affiliation.
National challenges
The NPP General Secretary urged the government to focus on what he described as more pressing national issues, including illegal mining, flooding, security concerns and the threat of terrorism in the sub-region.
He said Ghanaians expected decisive leadership in addressing those challenges rather than what he described as politically motivated prosecutions.
Party support
Mr Kodua Frimpong assured party supporters that the NPP would stand by its Ashanti Regional Chairman throughout the legal process.
He said the party remained convinced that Chairman Wontumi had been wrongfully convicted and described him as "a political prisoner.
Recall
The Accra High Court yesterday sentenced Chairman Wontumi to 20 years' imprisonment for assigning mineral rights granted to his company, Akonta Mining Limited, to Michael
Gyedu Ayisi and Henry Okum without obtaining the approval of the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources.
The court, presided over by Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, also sentenced him to another 20-year jail term for purposely facilitating an unlicensed mining operation on the Samreboi concession, contrary to Section 99(2)(b) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), as amended by Section 3 of the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 995).
The court ordered that the custodial sentences would run concurrently including the fines, meaning Chairman Wontumi will serve 20 years in prison.
In addition to the custodial sentence, the court fined him GH¢120,000 on each count. In default of payment, he will serve an additional three years' imprisonment.
he court also fined Akonta Mining Limited GH¢180,000 on each count for assigning mineral rights without ministerial approval and for purposely facilitating an unlicensed mining operation on the Samreboi concession.
