The Deputy Attorney-General, Justice Srem Sai, has disclosed that the prosecution will strongly oppose any submission of no case to answer expected from lawyers representing Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Bosiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, and his co-accused, Akonta Mining Limited.
In a Facebook post on February 4, the Deputy Attorney-General announced that the State had formally closed its case against Chairman Wontumi, Kwame Antwi (who is currently at large), and Akonta Mining Limited.
The core allegation is that Chairman Wontumi, without obtaining the required ministerial approval, permitted individuals to carry out illegal small-scale mining (galamsey) activities on his mining concession at Samreboi.
The prosecution called four witnesses during the trial. The first witness, a galamsey headman, testified that he was arrested alongside other illegal miners in an office belonging to Akonta Mining on the concession. He confirmed supervising several persons engaged in galamsey operations on the site.
The second witness, identified as the headman’s employer, stated that he had an arrangement with Chairman Wontumi to conduct galamsey on the concession while also carrying out land reclamation. He further alleged that Chairman Wontumi leveraged his political influence to secure national security protection for their illegal mining activities.
The third witness, a police detective, tendered investigative statements in evidence, including one in which Chairman Wontumi admitted granting a portion of his Samreboi concession to the second witness, but claimed it was solely for land reclamation purposes and not for galamsey. According to the statement, no payment was made for the reclamation.
The fourth witness, an expert in mining law and regulations, testified that transferring or allowing another person to undertake mining activities on a concession requires explicit approval from the Minister responsible for Lands and Natural Resources. He confirmed that Akonta Mining Limited had no such ministerial approval to permit others to mine or reclaim on the concession.
Following the closure of the State’s case, lawyers for Chairman Wontumi have indicated their intention to file a submission of no case to answer. This legal move would argue that the evidence presented by the prosecution is insufficient to require the accused to enter a defence.
The defence has 14 days within which to file and argue the submission.
In his post, Deputy Attorney-General Justice Srem Sai stated: “Our Attorneys will oppose the submission of no case.”