The High Court in Accra has granted the Attorney-General and Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, also known as Chairman Wontumi, more time to complete a plea negotiation in the trial in which he has been accused of causing a financial loss of GH¢30 million to the Ghana Exim Bank.
When the case came up for hearing on Monday, lawyers for both sides informed the court that both parties were still at the negotiation stage and needed more time to finalise the process. The Court, therefore, adjourned the case to July 27, 2026.
Chairman Wontumi and Thomas Antwi-Boasiako, a Director of Wontumi Farms Limited, have been accused by the state of using pretences to obtain GH¢14,302,000 from the Ghana Export-Import Bank.
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Chairman Wontumi has also been accused of authoring a forged document with the intent to defraud Exim Bank officials by allegedly using a forged receipt to obtain GH¢4,000,000 from the Bank. He has further been accused of taking a portion of GH¢14,302,000 from Wontumi Farms Limited, money the prosecution alleges was acquired through fraud, allegedly leading to the loss of GH¢30 million to the state.
He has pleaded not guilty to four counts of defrauding by false pretence, forgery, money laundering, and intentionally causing financial loss of over GH¢30 million to a public body.
Per the facts of the case, in January 2018, Chairman Wontumi approached the Ghana Export-Import Bank, acting ostensibly as Managing Director of Wontumi Farms Limited, and applied for a grant of GH¢19 million to finance a farming venture. The application was accompanied by a “Board Resolution Letter” purportedly authorising the grant, signed by Thomas Antwi-Boasiako in his self-described capacity as Board Chairman.
The prosecution contends that the Board Resolution Letter was dated January 23, 2018, yet bore a resolution passed, on its face, on December 9, 2017—four clear days before Wontumi Farms Limited was incorporated and authorised to commence business on December 14, 2017.
The application further represented to the Bank that a parcel of 100,000 acres of land had been secured for the project, and that the initial 2,500 hectares alone would employ some 6,000 families, or about 38,000 individuals.
On January 16, 2018, the Bank approved a mixed loan and grant facility of GH¢18,734,260, to be deployed for agricultural plant and machinery, working capital, staff and labour, and consultancy fees. Chairman Wontumi signed the acceptance in Kumasi on January 23, 2018, with Thomas Antwi-Boasiako as witness.
By March 2018, the Bank had disbursed the aggregate sum of GH¢14,302,000 to Wontumi Farms Limited. Sometime in March 2018, Chairman Wontumi presented to the Bank a document bearing the word “Receipt,” representing that Wontumi Farms had purchased GH¢4,000,000 worth of agricultural plant and machinery. The Bank, relying on this document, advanced further funds to the company.
“Investigations have since established that the document was not a genuine purchase receipt. It was originally a pro-forma invoice issued by KAS-SAMA Enterprise to Bernard Antwi-Boasiako when he made price inquiries, having indicated he would return to make the purchase. KAS-SAMA Enterprise never heard from him again. The inscription ‘Pro-forma Invoice’ on the document had been altered and replaced with the word ‘Receipt’,” the prosecution stated.
According to the prosecution, investigations have established that none of the proposed farming activities was undertaken. “No agricultural plant or machinery was bought. No person was employed to work on any farm. The accused persons did not own or secure the parcel of land they represented to the Bank as secured for the project,” the prosecution stated.
Instead, Chairman Wontumi is alleged to have withdrawn large sums from Wontumi Farms’ bank accounts and applied the monies to personal use, including investment in other business enterprises
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