The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the NPP, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, has been found guilty on all six counts in the Akonta Mining case.
This comes after the Accra High Court has rejected a request from his legal representatives to postpone the judgment and to refer certain elements of the case to the Supreme Court for constitutional interpretation before the court’s ruling.
Presiding over the case, Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay found Chairman Wontumi guilty of charges including the unlawful assignment of mineral rights and purposely facilitating unlicensed mining operations, contrary to the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), as amended.
Chairman Wontumi, along with Akonta Mining Company Limited and a co-defendant, Kwame Antwi, faced trial for illegal mining operations on the company’s concession in Samreboi, Western Region.
The prosecution contended that the defendants improperly allocated mineral rights on the concession without obtaining the necessary approval from the sector minister and enabled mining activities without the requisite authorisation, in violation of the Minerals and Mining Act.
Throughout the trial, Chairman Wontumi denied authorising prosecution witness Henry Okum, referred to as PW2, to undertake mining activities on the company’s concession.
He told the court that the arrangement with Mr Okum was strictly for land reclamation and coconut plantation activities, and not for mining.
The court, however, said the prosecution had established that Mr Antwi-Boasiako permitted Mr Okum and Michael Gyedu Ayisi to undertake mining activities on the concession without obtaining the prior written approval required under Section 14(1) of Act 703.
