The Office of the Attorney-General has turned down a plea-bargaining proposal submitted by the legal team of Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, in connection with criminal charges involving a loan facility from the Ghana Export-Import (EXIM) Bank.

Deputy Attorney-General Justice Srem Sai disclosed that although the prosecution and defence had begun negotiations under the plea-bargaining arrangement, the offer presented by Wontumi’s lawyers was considered unacceptable by the state.

Speaking in an interview with TV3 Ghana, Justice Srem Sai said the Attorney-General’s Office had already decided to reject the proposal but was yet to officially communicate the decision to the defence team.

“They made a plea proposal of what they want to offer. In our opinion, we are not satisfied, and so we intend to reject it. In fact, we have in our minds rejected it, just that we’ve not had a meeting with them to inform them of our rejection,” he said.

The Deputy Attorney-General did not reveal the specific terms of the proposal but explained that the state was not convinced the offer adequately addressed the concerns raised in the case.

He noted that while the defence team had proposed making a financial payment as part of the arrangement, the amount offered was deemed insufficient by the Attorney-General’s Office.

“They offered to pay some amount. It’s enough that we are still bargaining. Because plea bargaining is not supposed to be out there. When we finish, we’ll announce the conclusion, but they made an offer,” he stated.

Justice Srem Sai added that details of plea negotiations would only be made public after the process had been concluded, but confirmed that the offer submitted by Chairman Wontumi’s lawyers was found inadequate.

The state is expected to meet with the defence team to formally communicate its rejection of the proposal.