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An Accra High Court has set Monday, March 16, to deliver its ruling on a submission of no case filed by lawyers for Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, in an ongoing trial over alleged illegal mining activities at Samreboi.
Chairman Wontumi, the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), is standing trial together with two others for allegedly permitting mining operations on the Samreboi concession of Akonta Mining without the required authorisation.
Prosecutors allege that the accused persons assigned mining rights on the concession to a third party without approval from the responsible ministry, an act said to be contrary to Section 14 of the Minerals and Mining Act, which prohibits mining without lawful authority.
The court’s ruling on the no-case submission will determine whether the charges against the accused persons will be dismissed or whether they will be required to open their defence.
Meanwhile, the court has earlier varied the bail conditions granted to Chairman Wontumi.
The presiding judge explained that the court had initially delegated aspects of the bail supervision to the investigator, requiring periodic reports confirming that the accused remained within the court’s jurisdiction. However, the investigator failed to comply with the directive.
Due to the repeated failure to file the required reports, the court decided to adjust the reporting requirements rather than tighten the bail conditions or order the detention of the accused.
