Kwadwo Twum Boafo, Acting CEO of the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC)
The Acting CEO of the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), Kwadwo Twum Boafo, has stated that the public outcry surrounding the invitation and subsequent detention of NPP Ashanti Regional Chairman, Bernard Antwi Boasiako, known as Chairman Wontumi, is “exaggerated.”
Speaking on Pan African TV, Twum Boafo recounted his own experiences and those of fellow NDC appointees during the erstwhile Akufo-Addo administration in 2017, drawing a stark contrast.
He pointed out that while NDC officials faced similar EOCO invitations and home ransacking, their cases proceeded silently and without media razzmatazz.
“My home was ransacked. My father’s home was ransacked, even my younger brothers’ homes were ransacked,” he said.
He specifically mentioned Kojo Bonsu, Governor Richardson, and Alex Mould, all of the NDC, as examples.
He attributed Wontumi’s continued detention to a specific legal maneuver, stating that “Wontumi would be walking about freely if not for Gary Nimako running to court for bail variation on the blind side of Wontumi’s lawyers.”
Twum Boafo also took the opportunity to condemn Wontumi’s “unguarded statements” against President Mahama.
He passionately argued for more civility in political discourse.
“People have blood running through their veins. They have emotions. So, you can’t speak such uncouth words about them and think that it’s okay,” he fumed.
Adding another layer to his critique, Twum Boafo alleged a deeper, more sinister motive behind some of the public support for Wontumi.
“Some NPP gurus want him locked up for a number of reasons,” he claimed.
He questioned the presence of high-profile lawyers sitting in protest outside EOCO, suggesting they could have pursued proper legal channels for bail variation.
“Most of them want him locked up first for political vendetta because he got huge contracts that they did not get and some of them do not want him to contest the Ashanti Regional chairmanship,” he asserted, painting a picture of internal party strife.
VPO/AE
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