The Member of Parliament for Gomoa Central, Kwame Asare Obeng, popularly known as A-Plus, has criticized the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) over its reaction to the legal troubles facing Ashanti Regional Chairman of the party, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, widely known as Chairman Wontumi.
In a statement shared on his official Facebook page, the outspoken lawmaker slammed the NPP leadership for showing selective sympathy, accusing them of defending powerful political figures while abandoning ordinary Ghanaians who faced prosecution for similar offences under the previous administration.
Highlighting the stark contrast between the current administration’s strategy against illegal mining and that of the previous government, A-Plus noted that the ongoing anti-galamsey fight focuses on the financiers behind the trade rather than small-scale operators.
“Under President Nana Akufo-Addo’s administration, hundreds of people were prosecuted and jailed for illegal mining. In September 2024, then Attorney General Godfred Yeboah Dame disclosed that 187 people had already been convicted for illegal mining in the Eastern Region alone since August 2021, with more than 850 additional cases still pending before the courts,” he stated.
He continued: “So far, the current NDC administration has secured the conviction of only one person in connection with illegal mining. Based on that comparison, there would be 186 more cases to equal those recorded under the previous administration. Should we therefore expect a press conference after every conviction? The good news is that the NDC government is not dealing with poor people who are working for powerful sponsors and financiers of illegal mining. This government is dealing with the roots. They are taking down the mafia bosses.”
Addressing NPP General Secretary Justin Frimpong Kodua and party leaders directly, the Gomoa Central MP questioned why the party remained silent when ordinary citizens from their political strongholds were handed custodial sentences.
“Why didn’t you hold press conferences when people from the Eastern Region, your party’s political stronghold, were being jailed? Why didn’t the NPP describe them as political prisoners? The answer is very simple; those who were jailed under your government were largely ordinary Ghanaians. They were poor people without influence, whose stories rarely made the headlines,” A-Plus asserted.
He further cautioned party officials against displaying apathy towards everyday citizens who supported them during elections.
“Justin Kodua, if you care to know, some of those people may even have voted for your party in 2016. They are also human beings. They were also someone’s parents, children, brothers, sisters, relatives, and friends. They, too, deserved the same public concern and advocacy you have shown for Chairman Wontumi ,” he added.
Concluding his post with a sarcastic forecast regarding the legal battle surrounding the NPP regional chairman, A-Plus suggested that Chairman Wontumi faces a lengthy period away from active politics.
“Chairman Wontumi will be back after five World Cups: 2030, 2034, 2038, 2042, and 2046. By then, Lionel Messi will be just a few days shy of his 60th birthday, and babies born today will be in university,” he wrote.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana