In the grand courtroom of Ghanaian drama, where the gavel often doubles as a microphone and legal briefs trend more than TikTok dances, one man now finds himself starring in a legal season titled:
“The Return of the Galamsey Godfather: EOCO’s Last Laugh.”
That man?
Bernard Antwi Boasiako, aka Chairman Wontumi — mining magnate, political bulldozer, and unofficial patron saint of Ashanti Region’s soundbites.
Once the toast of political rallies and radio rants, Wontumi now finds himself at the centre of a legal jollof—cooked with EOCO’s hottest pepper, garnished with allegations of fraud, money laundering, and causing financial loss to the state. All that’s left is for Interpol to bring the salad.
But how did we get here?
Well, Justice Srem-Sai, Deputy Attorney-General and part-time truth sniper, casually dropped a legal grenade on Facebook (because press conferences are so last season). He revealed that Wontumi’s case had grown legs, crossed borders, and is now doing a world tour in the arms of EOCO and the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC).
And here’s the juicy part: Asset recovery is in full swing.
Which means if Wontumi so much as coughs up a golden toothpick, EOCO will weigh it, label it, and auction it with VAT.
But before the EOCO photocopier could warm up, enter the Minority in Parliament — led by Alexander Afenyo-Markin, Ghana’s answer to Aaron Sorkin — who marched straight to EOCO’s gate like Avengers on retainer. Not with fire and fury, but with briefcases and righteous indignation.
Their grievance?
Wontumi, they claimed, was being treated like an armed robber with allergies.
Unable to cough up a GH₵50 million bail, he was detained overnight. According to them, the bail condition was harsher than a Kumasi landlady collecting two years’ rent in advance — plus gas deposit.
They demanded “fairness”, “due process”, and a discount if possible.
But Bernard Ahiafor, the First Deputy Speaker, wore his law like a bulletproof vest.
He reminded them, with courtroom calm, that Parliament isn’t a remand yard. If you have issues with bail, don’t come and hold committee meetings at EOCO. “Go to court,” he essentially said — or in Ghanaian parlance,
“When your soup spills at home, you don’t report it to the chief’s palace.”
Meanwhile, in a plot twist that would make Nollywood jealous, Wontumi was reportedly moved from EOCO to a “small clinic” at the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB). Nobody specified whether this clinic had Panadol or a prayer warrior on standby, but the message was clear: the man dey suffer.
Afenyo-Markin accused EOCO of turning bail into punishment — like asking a guest to pound fufu before giving him water. Worse still, they demanded that properties be justified before posting bail.
In Ghanaian terms:
“Before you use your goat as security, you must prove it’s not your uncle’s.”
Social media, of course, did not disappoint.
Twitter, Facebook, and TikTok lit up like ECG meters during a storm.
Some called it Karma in legal robes. Others invoked the ancestral proverb:
“When the head of a family insults elders, the gods remove his slippers in public.”
One commentator, clearly sipping hot ginger tea, fired at youths who allegedly protested on Wontumi’s behalf for GH₵50 each:
“You collect coins to protect the man mining away your future? Next time, just sell your conscience on Tonaton!”
Another added, almost poetically:
“If you follow a rich man into a river, remember he can dry himself with dollars. You? You’ll catch pneumonia.”
The biggest suspense now?
If Wontumi somehow produces the GH₵50 million, FIC will investigate the money’s origin. If it’s in cash, they’ll count it till Christmas. If it’s in gold, they’ll weigh it with suspicion. If it’s in property, expect EOCO to pull up with a drone and a lawyer.
And so, Wontumi now walks a tightrope, with EOCO on one side, public outrage on the other, and Karma giggling softly in the background, wearing stilettos and a Supreme Court wig.
As the gods of karma dance Adowa on the roof of power, Chairman Wontumi sits in custody, his bail steeper than Afadzato in the rainy season.
And while his gold may shine, it won’t glitter past the scanners of EOCO, FIC, and every acronym that now smells cash like a goat sniffing ripe plantain.
Indeed, in this political season of accountability, let us remember the old Akan proverb:
“When the chicken perches on a rope, neither the chicken nor the rope sleeps well.”
Wontumi is the chicken. The justice system is the rope.
And the rest of us? We’re the curious village spectators… eating roasted groundnuts and taking notes.
The writer, Jimmy Aglah, is a media executive, author, and sharp-eyed social commentator. His debut novel, Blood and Gold: The Rebellion of Sikakrom, now available on Amazon Kindle, explores power, rebellion, and the soul of a nation. When he’s not steering broadcast operations, he’s busy challenging conventions—often with satire, always with purpose.
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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
