Parliament can’t revise Wontumi’s bail, go to court – Ahiafor tells Minority

The First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Bernard Ahiafor, has advised Members of the Minority Caucus to seek legal redress in court if they believe the GH₵50 million bail condition imposed on Bernard Antwi Boasiako—popularly known as Chairman Wontumi—is excessive.

Chairman Wontumi, the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), remains in custody after failing to meet bail conditions granted on Wednesday, May 28.

The terms include a GH₵50 million bond with two sureties, both of whom must justify their eligibility.

In response to Wontumi’s continued detention, Minority MPs staged a dramatic protest on Thursday, May 29, marching from Parliament to the headquarters of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) in Accra.

Dressed in symbolic red and black, the MPs blocked the EOCO entrance, sang solidarity songs, and declared their intention to sleep on the premises.

Minority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin, who led the protest, also announced a boycott of parliamentary proceedings by NPP MPs until Wontumi is released.

He argued that the bail terms were unduly harsh and politically motivated, stressing that Wontumi has not been charged with any crime and has cooperated with investigators.

Former Assin Central MP Kennedy Agyapong has since offered to serve as one of the sureties to help secure Wontumi’s release.

Responding to the protest, Deputy Speaker Bernard Ahiafor urged the MPs to follow due process.

“This is a matter that can adequately be addressed by the judiciary. For me, if a decision of an institution can be challenged at the court, if a security agency impose a bail condition that you feel that the bail condition is harsh, I do not think Parliament will have the authority to call for a review of that particular decision,” he stated on the floor of Parliament.

He added that the constitution provides clear legal avenues for challenging perceived excessive bail or unlawful detention.

Meanwhile, Deputy Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Justice Srem-Sai, confirmed that Wontumi is under investigation for serious offences including fraud, causing financial loss to the state, and money laundering.

He also revealed that a second strand of the probe involves an international organised crime network, with EOCO working in collaboration with global law enforcement partners.