The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, yesterday landed himself a 20-year jail term for permitting others to undertake mining on his company’s concession at Samreboi in the Western Region, without written approval from the sector minister.
He was also fined GH¢120,000 for the offence while his company, Akonta Mining Limited was fined GH¢180,000 for its role in unlawfully assigning the concession to a third party.
A High Court in Accra, presided over by Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, in her judgement, said the court took notice of the gravity of the offence and the need for deterrent sentence to address the environmental devastation caused by illegal mining.
Chairman Wontumi, who was wearing a bright yellow and blue Agbada, looked dejected the moment the court found him guilty of the offences.
Charges
Chairman Wontumi was charged with one count of assignment of mineral rights without approval, and another count of purposely facilitating an unlicensed mining operation, 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).
His company, Akonta Mining and another person identified as Kwame Antwi, who is on the run, were charged with the same offences.
Chairman Wontumi pleaded not guilty to the charges and pleaded not guilty on behalf of the companies. Kwame Antwi never showed up for the trial and no effort was made to locate him during the pendency of the trial.
AG’s Case
The prosecution, led by the Deputy Attorney General, Dr. Justice Srem-Sai, called four witnesses, including Michael Gyedu Ayisi, an artisanal miner, Henry Okum, a small-scale miner, Joseph Iroko, a Senior Manager (Legal) at the Minerals Commission, and Detective Chief Inspector Sarfo Asiedu Kwasi, the case investigator.
Michael Gyedu Ayisi told the court that he worked under Henry Okum on the Samreboi concession and that he got to know that the concession belonged to Wontumi based on information provided by Okum.
Henry Okum also told the court that he entered into a verbal arrangement with Chairman Wontumi to undertake land reclamation and mining activities on the Samreboi concession.
However, he confirmed under cross-examination that there was no written agreement, deed of assignment, or ministerial approval validating the alleged arrangement between him and Chairman Wontumi.
The prosecution’s third witness, on his part, told the court that a search of the Commission’s records revealed no application, approval, or documentation indicating that Akonta Mining Company Limited had assigned or transferred its concession at Samreboi to Henry Okum, adding that in the absence of ministerial approval, no assignment could be considered formally recognised.
The case investigator, Detective Chief Inspector Sarfo Asiedu Kwasi, testified about police investigations into mining operations at Samreboi and parts of the Tano Nimiri Forest. He said police arrested 29 suspects and seized excavators, gold, firearms, ammunition, and cash.
Wontumi’s Defence
Chairman Wontumi then opened his defence and testified himself, while calling four witnesses, including Wisdom Edem Gomashie, a mining expert; George Mireku-Duker, former Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources responsible for Mining; Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, former Western Regional Minister and Chairman of the Regional Security Council (REGSEC), and Evans Addae.
Chairman Wontumi denied ever permitting any person to undertake mining on his Samreboi concession.
He told the court that the company had acquired a lease but since there was no parliamentary ratification, the company did not undertake any mining operations on the concession.
Mr. Darko-Mensah, also “categorically and unequivocally” rejected the assertion that Chairman Wontumi and Akonta Mining Company Limited were engaged in or facilitating illegal mining on the company’s concession at Samreboi.
Mr. Mireku-Duker, on his part, also told the court that Akonta Mining Limited’s concession was invaded by illegal miners and a report of same was forwarded to the ministry during his tenure.
Judgement
Justice Kocuvie-Tay, in her judgement, said the issue in contention is that Chairman Wontumi admitted he permitted Henry Okum to enter the concession but not for mining but rather for reclamation purposes – planting coconut on the degraded portion of the land, while Henry Okum also told the court that Chairman Wontumi had permitted him to mine on the concession and use the proceeds to undertake the reclamation.
She, however, noted that the agreement between them is not documented and there is no witness to that agreement so, there is no direct evidence of the nature of the agreement.
Justice Kocuvie-Tay therefore relied on circumstantial evidence to hold that Chairman Wontumi permitted Okum to illegally mine on the concession and use the proceeds to undertake the reclamation.
She said no reasonable evidence existed to rival the conclusion that Chairman Wontumi permitted Henry Okum to reclaim the land with proceeds Okum generated from the illegal mining activities on the Akonta Mining’s concession.
The court said evidence in the trial point to the fact that Chairman Wontumi alone was the sole controlling mind and hand of Akonta Mining Limited at all times material, holding that the company did not have any proper corporate governance structure.
The court, therefore, lifted the corporate veil and held Chairman Wontumi responsible for acts done on behalf of the company, holding that there is no difference between him and the company as far as their dealing with Henry Okum was concerned.
“This Court finds that the 1st accused (Chairman Wontumi) was the true and de facto mineral rights holder in the concession in question,” the court held.
Justice Kocuvie-Tay also held that Okum is not a registered mining support services provider, yet Chairman Wontumi admitted permitting him to enter the concession to undertake reclamation activities without visiting the concession himself to confirm whether Okum was doing what he was assigned to do.
The court, therefore, found Chairman Wontumi guilty of all two charges and after considering the plea mitigation, sentenced him to 20 years’ imprisonment in hard labour and also fined him GH¢120,000, on each counts, in default he will serve additional three years. The sentences are to run concurrently.
The court further ordered that some items found on the concession during the arrest of illegal miners, including GH¢157,000 cash, eight (8) pump action guns, one (1) single-barreled gun, five (5) pieces of metal suspected to be gold concealed in a sachet, should be confiscated to the state.
Other items include four (4) machetes, several water pumping machines, 310 AAA/BB cartridges, one (1) grease gun, four (4) motorcycles, two (2) vehicles, 25 serviceable excavators, and four (4) non-serviceable excavators.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak