The Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party, Haruna Mohammed, has defended the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the party, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, over charges linked to a loan facility from Ghana Exim Bank, arguing that any alleged irregularities should be attributed to the bank rather than the beneficiary.

Speaking in an interview on Channel One TV on Sunday, May 17, 2026, Haruna Mohammed accused Dominic Ayine of attempting to criminalise political opponents before the matter has been fully determined by the courts.

He argued that if investigators believe there were breaches in the loan approval process, responsibility should lie with the bank officials who approved the facility and not with the borrower.

“And if they think something is wrong with the way the loan was granted, then the issue should be with the bank and not him. In this particular circumstance, you can clearly see that it is a targeted attack,” he said.

According to Haruna Mohammed, Chairman Wontumi followed the required procedures in securing the loan facility and should not be singled out for prosecution.

“The Ashanti Regional Chairman did not pick up a cutlass and go to the bank to take the loan. He went through due process like every applicant would do,” he stated.

However, court documents filed at the High Court in Accra indicate that the accused persons are facing four criminal charges, including defrauding by false pretences, uttering forged documents, money laundering, and intentionally causing financial loss to a public institution.

According to the charge sheet dated May 15, 2026, prosecutors allege that the accused persons secured approximately GH¢14.3 million from Ghana Exim Bank in 2018 under the pretext of establishing a large-scale farming project.

Chairman Wontumi, together with Thomas Antwi Boasiako, who is reportedly at large, and Wontumi Farms Limited, has been formally charged over an alleged multi-million cedi fraud and money laundering scheme linked to the loan facility.

According to the prosecution, Wontumi Farms Limited applied for a GH¢19 million loan facility using documents that allegedly claimed the company had acquired a 100,000-acre parcel of land for the agricultural project.

SO/MA

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