A communications team member of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), Eric Sosu, says the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, caused his own woes after being sentenced to a 20-year prison term with hard labour for facilitating unlawful mining activities.
He stated that Chairman Wontumi “prepared his own death from his own kitchen” and should blame no one else but himself.
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Mr Sosu noted that Wontumi behaved like a lawless man, wrongly believing the law would never catch up with him.
He emphasised that illegal mining activities (galamsey) pose a severe threat to human life, forest reserves, and water bodies, asserting that anyone involved must face the law regardless of political affiliation.
According to him, Wontumi acted with impunity and recklessness, and is now paying the price for his actions.
He urged the state to go after everyone involved in illegal mining, stressing that the greed, selfishness, and evil of a few individuals cannot override the public interest.
He added that even in countries like China, corrupt politicians face execution when found guilty, making Wontumi’s 20-year sentence generous by comparison.
“Chairman Wontumi prepared his own death in his own kitchen. He thought he was living extravagantly, but little did he know his day of reckoning was coming. He was a reckless politician. He acted with impunity, thinking he was immune from accountability. He is someone who sat on television and paraded bars of gold to demonstrate his level of wealth. He spoke to people by heart as if there was no law in Ghana,” he added.
Mr Sosu posited that Ghanaians must not allow politicians to use propaganda to undermine the rule of law, slamming the NPP for describing Wontumi as a “political prisoner”.
He asserted that Wontumi was convicted and sentenced strictly for his criminal offences, not because of his political status.
He further accused the NPP of lacking the political will to fight illegal mining during their tenure, a failure he said resulted in the destruction of water bodies and forest reserves across the country.
Ghanaians, he indicated, are now discerning and will no longer allow politicians to deceive them.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
