Former Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, is set to press ahead with his bid for the party’s National Chairmanship despite serving a 20-year prison sentence.
His spokesperson, Dr Palgrave Boakye-Dankwah, says Wontumi’s supporters will pick up his nomination forms and begin the formal process of entering him into the race.
Speaking on Joy FM on Wednesday, August 19, Dr Boakye-Dankwah said the forms would be picked up on Friday and taken to Wontumi for his signature before being submitted and filed.
“Chairman Wontumi is a politician. His friends believe in his ambition, and they are going to make sure that his form will be picked, submitted and filed,” he said.
He insisted that Wontumi’s incarceration would not, by itself, prevent his supporters from initiating the nomination process.
Dr Boakye-Dankwah said the decision reflected the determination of Wontumi’s supporters to keep his political ambitions alive while his legal matters continue.
“I’m certain that the friends of Chairman Wontumi premised their decision to pick up a form for him purely based on the party’s position on the imprisonment of Chairman Wontumi, considering him as a political prisoner,” he said.
The move could, however, set up a major internal contest over Wontumi’s eligibility, given provisions of the NPP constitution concerning members who have been convicted and sentenced for certain offences.
Dr Boakye-Dankwah said Wontumi’s team would cross that bridge when any formal objection or challenge is raised.
Campaign Already Advanced
According to the spokesperson, Wontumi’s bid is not a last-minute decision prompted by his imprisonment.
He said the former Ashanti Regional Chairman had already embarked on a nationwide campaign before his incarceration, visiting all 16 regions and the 276 constituencies.
“Chairman was one of the first persons who stepped into the competition. He’s done his first round of the campaign already,” he said.
The decision to proceed with the nomination therefore means Wontumi’s campaign will continue even as he remains in custody and pursues legal avenues to challenge his conviction and sentence.
Jail Term And Bail Application
Wontumi is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence imposed by the Criminal Division of the High Court over illegal mining activities on the Samreboi concession in the Western Region.
Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay handed down the sentence on July 20, 2026, alongside a fine of 10,000 penalty units, equivalent to GH¢120,000.
The court further ordered an additional three-year prison term should he fail to pay the fine.
His bail application has subsequently been adjourned to October 15, 2026, after Wontumi and his lawyers failed to appear before the court for the hearing.
Deputy Attorney General, Justice Srem-Sai, was present in court.
For now, however, Wontumi’s political machinery appears determined to keep his National Chairmanship bid alive, with his supporters preparing to formally enter him into the race despite his imprisonment.
