The incarcerated Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, has publicly apologised to President John Dramani Mahama and First Lady Lordina Mahama for any offensive remarks he made during the campaign leading up to the 2024 general election.
The apology comes as Wontumi serves a 20-year prison sentence after being convicted over illegal mining activities in the Samreboi Forest in the Western Region.
Wontumi’s spokesperson, Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, described the apology as a sincere gesture of goodwill and appealed to President Mahama to consider granting the former Ashanti Regional Chairman clemency.
“The first call is to render an apology, and I think that is important. Former Chairman renders an apology to him if, at some stage, the conversations went overboard, which was never intended,” Boakye-Danquah said.
He, however, insisted that the apology should not be construed as an admission that politics influenced the legal process that culminated in Wontumi’s conviction.
“Not at all. We are aware that in this country there are influences. If you are able to identify those influences and begin making amends, I think we build a better society for all of us to live in,” he stated.
According to Boakye-Danquah, the appeal for forgiveness is intended to promote national reconciliation and mutual respect rather than suggest that political considerations played any role in the prosecution or sentencing of the NPP stalwart.
Chairman Wontumi was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment after Criminal Court 4 of the High Court found him guilty on all six charges brought against him.
He was prosecuted alongside Akonta Mining Limited and a third accused person, Kwame Antwi, over illegal mining activities on the company’s concession at Samreboi.
The prosecution argued that the accused unlawfully assigned mineral rights on the concession without obtaining approval from the sector minister and facilitated mining operations without the requisite authorisation, contrary to the provisions of Ghana’s Minerals and Mining Act.
The conviction has become one of the most high-profile illegal mining cases in recent years, with Wontumi’s latest apology and appeal for clemency adding a new dimension to the political and legal discussions surrounding the case.
, Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, has publicly apologised to President John Dramani Mahama and First Lady){kind=link}