The Legal Affairs Director of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Gary Nimako Marfo, says the recent Court of Appeal decision acquitting former Chief Executive Officer of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC), Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu, has strengthened his confidence that Ashanti Regional Chairman of the party, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, will also succeed in overturning his conviction on appeal.
Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile programme on Saturday, August 1, Mr Nimako argued that a careful reading of both judgments suggested significant similarities in the legal issues raised, insisting that the appellate court’s reasoning in the Sedina case provided grounds for optimism regarding Chairman Wontumi’s appeal.
“This judgment, as it stands, gives me hope in Wontumi’s appeal. Yes, because if you read Wontumi’s judgment at the High Court, and the manner in which the conviction took place, and you juxtapose that judgment vis-a-vis this particular judgment, then clearly, I can tell the people that look, Wontumi will succeed in an appeal, if you take this judgment into consideration,” he stated.
His comments come days after the Court of Appeal set aside the conviction and 10-year prison sentence imposed on Ms Tamakloe-Attionu by the High Court in a case involving alleged financial irregularities during her tenure as MASLOC Chief Executive.
The appellate court’s decision effectively discharged and acquitted the former MASLOC boss after allowing her appeal against both the conviction and sentence.
Mr Nimako contended that the legal reasoning adopted by the Court of Appeal in the Sedina case could equally prove persuasive in the appeal filed by Chairman Wontumi, who is challenging a 20-year custodial sentence imposed by the High Court over offences linked to illegal mining activities.
He believes there are common grounds to both cases. The NPP legal chief maintained that the Court of Appeal’s latest decision had reinforced his conviction that the High Court’s judgment against Chairman Wontumi would not stand.
Chairman Wontumi has already filed an appeal seeking to overturn both his conviction and sentence, arguing that the High Court erred in its findings. The Court of Appeal is expected to determine whether the trial court properly applied the law and assessed the evidence before reaching its verdict.
Chairman Wontumi is currently serving his sentence in jail as his lawyers race to get a favourable outcome on the appeal.
In a unanimous judgment, the appellate court held that the prosecution had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt, setting aside the convictions entered against the former MASLOC Chief Executive by the High Court.
The appeal challenged both the merits of the conviction and the legality of Ms Tamakloe-Attionu’s trial and sentencing in absentia. Her lawyers had argued that the charges were fundamentally defective and that the prosecution had failed to establish the offences beyond reasonable doubt.
Ms Tamakloe-Attionu was extradited from the United States to Ghana on June 9, 2026, after years outside the country. She began serving her 10-year prison sentence at the Nsawam Medium Security Female Prison on June 24 before the Court of Appeal quashed the conviction just weeks later.
The ruling has generated widespread debate among legal practitioners, governance experts and anti-corruption advocates, with differing opinions emerging over whether the judgment reflects deficiencies in the prosecution’s case or broader challenges within Ghana’s criminal justice system.
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