Ghanaian businessman Bernard Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, is facing fresh charges over allegations that he defrauded Ghana Export-Import Bank of more than GHC14 million ($1.2 million) and caused financial loss to the state estimated at GHC30 million ($2.6 million).

Bernard Boasiako, the former Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party, was accused alongside Wontumi Farms Limited and another individual in a case involving an Exim Bank financing facility. The allegations have not been determined by the court.

Prosecution refiles charges after plea talks collapse

The latest development follows the collapse of plea negotiations between Bernard Boasiako’s legal team and the prosecution.

The state filed a fresh charge sheet on September 22, 2026, containing allegations of defrauding by false pretences, uttering a forged document, money laundering and intentionally causing financial loss to a public body.

The case dates back to an alleged Exim Bank loan transaction connected to a farming project. Prosecutors have previously alleged that more than GHC14 million ($1.2 million) was obtained under false pretences between 2018 and 2022.

Wontumi’s lawyers seek more time

Bernard Boasiako was first arraigned in May 2026, after which his legal team entered discussions with the prosecution over a possible plea arrangement.

The negotiations were subsequently described by the Deputy Attorney-General, Justice Srem-Sai, as being advanced. However, no agreement was reached, leading the prosecution to refile the charges.

At Tuesday’s court sitting, prosecutors sought to withdraw the previous charge sheet to replace it with the newly filed charges. Boasiako’s lawyers requested an adjournment, arguing that they had received the new charge sheet only on the morning of the hearing.

The court adjourned the matter to October 13, 2026. The fresh charges move the case forward after months of attempted plea negotiations and leave Bernard Boasiako to respond to the prosecution’s allegations concerning the Exim Bank transaction and the broader claim of financial loss to the Ghanaian state.

Wontumi’s business and political career

Bernard Antwi BoasiakoChairman Wontumi, former Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party rose through the NPP’s grassroots structure before becoming Ashanti Regional Chairman in 2014, a position he retained through the party’s 2018 and 2022 regional elections.

Beyond politics, Boasiako has business interests in media and mining and has been associated with Akonta Mining Company Limited, which operates in Ghana’s Western Region, and owns Wontumi Radio and Movement TV, media platforms focused on political commentary, entertainment and public affairs.

In July 2026, an Accra High Court convicted Boasiako and Akonta Mining of offences relating to mining activities on the company’s Samreboi concession and sentenced him to 20 years’ imprisonment with hard labour, with the sentences on the two counts running concurrently. Boasiako has appealed the conviction and sentence.