Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, the 2028 flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has joined senior party leaders, legal counsel, and key executives for an emergency meeting to review the High Court judgment sentencing the Ashanti Regional Chairman, Bernard Antwi Boasiako (popularly known as Chairman Wontumi), to 20 years in prison.
The emergency deliberations come after the High Court, presided over by Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, found Chairman Wontumi and Akonta Mining Limited guilty of offences related to illegal mining operations in the Samreboi area, including the unlawful assignment of mineral rights and facilitating unlicensed mining.
Legal Team Reviewing High Court Ruling
In an official statement, NPP General Secretary Justin Frimpong Kodua confirmed that top party leadership, alongside Dr. Bawumia and the legal defense team, assembled immediately following the court’s verdict to dissect the legal grounds of the conviction and determine their strategy for appeal.
“The leadership of the New Patriotic Party, together with our Flagbearer and the Party’s legal team, is currently meeting to thoroughly review the judgment delivered by the Court,” stated Justin Frimpong Kodua. “The party will communicate its official position and decisions arising from these deliberations in due course.”
Justice Kocuvie-Tay sentenced Wontumi to 20 years’ imprisonment on two separate counts, to run concurrently, while imposing a fine of 10,000 penalty units. Akonta Mining Limited was additionally fined 15,000 penalty units on each of its two convicted counts.
Delegation Visits Nsawam Prison & Party Calls for Calm
Following the high-level strategy sessions, Dr. Bawumia led a senior NPP delegation—including former National Chairman Freddie Blay, Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, and Mampong MP Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong—to visit Chairman Wontumi at the Nsawam Medium Security Prison, where he is currently being held.
Party leadership and the Parliamentary Ashanti Caucus have called on supporters, particularly in the Ashanti Region, to remain calm, disciplined, and united while the legal team prepares to challenge the sentence through the appellate courts.
