National Executive Committee member of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Wonder Victor Kutor, has urged the government to prosecute all individuals implicated in the Akonta Mining illegal mining case.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s Breakfast Daily on Monday, July 27, Kutor argued that while the Ashanti Regional Chairman, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi’s conviction was significant, other persons who allegedly engaged in illegal mining activities should equally be held accountable, regardless of any plea bargain arrangements reached with prosecutors.
According to him, the devastating environmental and social consequences of illegal mining demand a broader application of justice to ensure that all offenders are punished.
Kutor acknowledged that prosecutors may rely on plea bargain agreements to secure evidence against principal suspects but maintained that such arrangements should not allow individuals who actively participated in illegal mining to escape prosecution.
“The impact of galamsey on society is enormous. While I understand that evidence is important and prosecutors may need people to testify, those who actually carried out the illegal mining should not go scot-free. Wontumi has been convicted under specific laws, but that does not make others who engaged in the illegal mining innocent,” he said.
Kutor also appealed to the opposition NPP to support efforts to combat illegal mining instead of focusing solely on Wontumi’s conviction, stressing that accountability should extend to every person found culpable.
His comments come after Chairman Wontumi was sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment following his trial over activities linked to Akonta Mining’s concession.
During the trial, Wontumi denied authorising prosecution witness Henry Okum to mine on the concession, insisting that he had only granted him access to reclaim degraded land through coconut planting. Testifying in his defence before the High Court in Accra on May 21, Wontumi maintained that the arrangement was strictly for land reclamation and not for mining.
He further told the court that he never assigned mineral rights to Henry Okum or knowingly facilitated illegal mining on the concession, despite admitting under cross-examination that he had permitted the witness access to the site.
However, the court subsequently found him guilty and sentenced him to 20 years’ imprisonment in accordance with the law.
