The High Court in Accra has sentenced Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, to 20 years imprisonment on each of the two charges for which he was found guilty in the Akonta Mining illegal mining case.

The sentences will run concurrently.

In addition to the custodial sentence, the court imposed a fine of 10,000 penalty units on Wontumi for each count. Akonta Mining Limited, which was also convicted on two charges, was fined 15,000 penalty units for each offence.

Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, who presided over the case, convicted Chairman Wontumi on charges relating to the unlawful assignment of mineral rights and the facilitation of illegal mining activities.

Akonta Mining Limited was also found guilty of similar offences after the court concluded that the prosecution had established all the required elements of the charges beyond reasonable doubt.

The judgment followed the court’s rejection of a last-minute application by the defence seeking to suspend proceedings and refer constitutional matters raised in the case to the Supreme Court.

The defence had argued that issues concerning the interpretation of Section 99(2)(b) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703) required clarification by the apex court. However, Justice Kocuvie-Tay ruled that the provision was clear and did not create any conflict with Article 19(11) of the 1992 Constitution.

The court held that a constitutional referral was only necessary where there was genuine uncertainty in the law.

Court rules unlawful mining arrangement was established

In relation to the unlawful assignment of mineral rights, the court found that Akonta Mining had allowed another person to exercise mining rights without the approval of the Minister responsible for Lands and Natural Resources.

Justice Kocuvie-Tay said the prosecution proved that Akonta Mining held the mineral rights, transferred control over those rights and did so without the required ministerial consent.

The court noted that the absence of approval was not disputed, as evidence presented by the Minerals Commission confirmed that no such authorisation had been granted.

The judge also rejected the defence’s position that Henry Okum was only involved in reclaiming degraded land and not mining.

According to the court, evidence showed that Mr Okum, a small-scale miner, was permitted to mine portions of the concession and use proceeds from the activity to support reclamation work.

Justice Kocuvie-Tay described Chairman Wontumi’s explanation that Okum would recover his investment through future coconut farming as unconvincing.

Court holds Wontumi controlled company operations

The court further ruled that although Akonta Mining is a separate legal entity, the circumstances of the case justified lifting the corporate veil.

Justice Kocuvie-Tay found that Chairman Wontumi exercised significant control over the company’s operations and treated him as the effective decision-maker behind the mining activities.

On the charges of facilitating illegal mining, the court held that Wontumi and Akonta Mining knowingly allowed Henry Okum to undertake mining activities without the necessary approvals.

The judge cited evidence that Wontumi introduced Okum to an individual who helped him acquire an excavator for the operation, which the court considered proof of deliberate facilitation.

Final convictions

The court convicted Bernard Antwi Boasiako on:

• Count One: Unlawful assignment of mineral rights without ministerial approval
• Count Four: Purposefully facilitating illegal mining activities

Akonta Mining Limited was convicted on:

• Count Three: Unlawful assignment of mineral rights without ministerial approval
• Count Six: Purposefully facilitating illegal mining activities

The convictions were secured under the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), as amended by the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2020 (Act 995), which provides tougher sanctions for mining-related offences.