The Office of the Attorney General has reportedly refuted claims that former Attorney General Godfred Yeboah Dame received a Criminal Investigations Department (CID) docket on Akonta Mining Company during his tenure. The response allegedly came through a Right to Information (RTI) request filed after a heated television debate in October 2025.
Minister for Government Communications Felix Ofosu Kwakye had asserted during Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana programme on October 10, 2025, that the previous government deliberately ignored a CID report on illegal mining activities by Akonta Mining Company Limited. The company is owned by New Patriotic Party (NPP) Ashanti Regional Chairman Bernard Antwi Boasiako, widely known as Wontumi.
During the broadcast, Ofosu Kwakye stated that the CID investigated and produced a report in 2022 identifying illegal mining by Akonta. He claimed the former Attorney General knew about the report but failed to act. Co-panelist Paul Adom Otchere challenged these assertions, stating he had checked with Dame, who denied receiving any such report during his time in office.
The minister responded by suggesting that if Dame truly was unaware of the report, it demonstrated incompetence that made him unfit for the position. He maintained that the Attorney General and government were aware of the CID findings but chose inaction, making them complicit in illegal mining activities.
Following the television programme, private legal practitioner Jonathan Asare reportedly filed an RTI request with Attorney General Dominic Akuritinga Ayine’s office. The request allegedly sought to establish when CID investigations into Akonta Mining concluded, when any docket was presented to the Attorney General, and whether the CID submitted a docket between 2022 and 2024.
According to documents circulating online, the Attorney General’s office responded through designated information officer Lydia Attoh on December 22, 2025. The response allegedly stated that the office cannot specify exactly when CID completed its investigations, though petitions were received in October 2022 from Ing. Ken Ashigbey and lawyer Martin Kpebu requesting investigation into Akonta’s activities in the Tano Nimiri forest.
The alleged response further stated the CID presented its docket to the Attorney General’s office on or about September 15, 2025. Crucially, the office reportedly confirmed it did not receive any docket on Akonta Mining between 2022 and 2024, directly contradicting Ofosu Kwakye’s television claims.
NewsGhana could not independently verify the RTI response documents or confirm their authenticity with the Attorney General’s office before publication. Attempts to reach the Minister for Government Communications for comment were unsuccessful.
The Akonta Mining case has become politically charged since the current administration filed criminal charges against Wontumi and others in October 2025. Prosecutors allege the company conducted mining operations without proper licenses in the Tano Nimiri Forest Reserve, felled trees without authorization, and erected unauthorized structures.
One of the accused, Edward Akuoko, became a state witness after prosecutors dropped charges against him in November 2025. The remaining defendants, including Wontumi, maintain their innocence. Two other accused persons, operations manager Kwadwo Owusu Bempah and co-director Kwame Antwi, remain at large according to court documents.
The question of when authorities received the docket matters significantly. If the docket only reached the Attorney General’s office in September 2025 under the current administration, it would undermine accusations that the previous government deliberately suppressed the investigation. However, questions remain about why a 2022 investigation took three years to reach prosecutors.
Whether Ofosu Kwakye will retract his October statements or what legal action Dame might pursue remains unclear. The former Attorney General has not publicly commented on the matter since the television debate.
