Wontumi’s 20 years jail term lenient; Akonta Mining damage warrants maximum sentence – NDC

Deputy Director of IT and Elections of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Rashid Tanko Computer, says the 20-year prison sentence handed to New Patriotic Party (NPP) Ashanti Regional Chairman Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, was lenient considering the scale of environmental destruction caused by illegal mining activities.

His comments follow the Accra High Court's conviction and sentencing of Chairman Wontumi to 20 years' imprisonment over illegal mining activities on the Samreboi concession in the Western Region.

Speaking on JoyNews' The Pulse on Monday, July 20, Mr Tanko Computer claimed that residents in affected communities continue to suffer the consequences of pollution and exposure to harmful substances used in illegal mining.