Dr Justice Srem Sai, the Deputy Attorney General and Minister for Justice, has revealed that the Bernard Antwi Boasiako, commonly known as Chairman Wontumi, EXIM Bank trial will continue despite ongoing settlement negotiations.
According to the Deputy AG, negotiations have not been abandoned, but the government has decided not to suspend the trial.
Speaking in an interview on Morning Starr, Dr Srem Sai stated, “We, as prosecutors, have decided to proceed with the trial while we continue negotiations on the side”.
He disclosed that the decision was communicated to Wontumi’s lawyers after two meetings between the parties, adding that ongoing negotiations had not produced an agreement acceptable to the state.
The Deputy Attorney General also revealed that a GH¢12 million settlement proposal falls significantly below what the bank expects to recover.
According to Srem Sai, accepting an amount substantially below the alleged losses would not be prudent, particularly after assessing the evidence and circumstances surrounding the case.
He disclosed that the government does not believe it would be appropriate to accept less than half of the losses allegedly caused simply to allow the accused to walk free.
“The 12 million you mentioned, if indeed he said that, then 12 million is far below what even the bank expects to get,” he said.
“They know what to do if they want that situation to change. We have told them what to do if they want that situation to change,” he said.
Earlier, Dr Justice Srem-Sai told the court today, Monday, July 27, that the plea bargain negotiations between the State and Chairman Wontumi in the Exim Bank criminal case are at an advanced stage.
According to the Deputy Attorney General, the Plea bargain talks in Wontumi’s Exim Bank case were derailed by his conviction in a separate criminal case.
Samuel Atta Akyea told the court he has taken over the defence of Wontumi following the withdrawal of the previous counsel, Andy Appiah-Kubi and subsequently requested an adjournment until October to enable the parties to conclude discussions on a possible plea bargain.
Justice Srem-Sai shared the defence’s desire to continue negotiations but proposed a shorter adjournment of 30 days instead of the 90 days.
He revealed that negotiations had progressed significantly before they were interrupted by Wontumi’s conviction.
The Deputy Attorney General told the court, “We have received an offer, and we have made a counteroffer, which we were supposed to conclude last week before the accused person’s conviction in another matter derailed the negotiation”.
“Most importantly, in order not to let disclosures, which we are yet to do, prejudice the plea negotiations, which indeed are far advanced, we would pray that My Lady accepts our waiver of the right to continue with proceedings and rather take a short adjournment to attempt concluding the negotiations before being directed to file our disclosures,” he said.
Atta Akyea agreed with the prosecution’s reasoning but appealed to the court to adjourn the matter until the next legal term in October.
The Judge, however, indicated that the court was guided by the provisions governing plea bargaining and would not halt the trial process.
The judge ruled, “I want to stay within Section 152(c)(5). I will adjourn with the view that the case is proceeding to trial without prejudice to the plea bargain”.
The case was subsequently adjourned to August 27 for further directions.
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