By Love Wilhelmina Abanonave
The Minister for Justice and Attorney-General, Dr. Dominic Akuritinga Ayine, has revealed that Mr. Bernard Antwi Boasiako, also known as Chairman Wontumi, under the false pretense of transferring money to his workers at Wontumi Farms Limited, instead transferred the sum of GH¢400,000 from Exim Bank and IBAN Capital Limited to galamsey workers.
Addressing the media at the Government Accountability Series today, Dr. Ayine provided details that IBAN Capital Limited was contracted by Exim Bank in February 2018 to provide financial technology services, including a payment platform for staff salary payments, for Wontumi Farms Limited. The platform was meant to facilitate payments to farmhands employed by Wontumi Farms, with IBAN Capital receiving funds directly from Exim Bank for disbursement to workers’ wallets.
According to the Attorney-General, investigations, however, revealed that Wontumi Farms Limited failed to provide IBAN Capital with the required database of workers, as there were no farmhands working on the land.
“Chairman Wontumi, CEO of Wontumi Farms, insisted and put pressure on IBAN Capital and Exim Bank to transfer GH¢400,000 meant for workers of Wontumi Farms Limited, citing that the youth involved in galamsey (illegal mining) were not familiar with electronic payment systems and preferred cash payments,” he said.
Further discrepancies arose from a pro forma invoice submitted by Wontumi Farms Limited to Exim Bank on December 15, 2017, for farm equipment, including tractors and harvesters. Exim Bank subsequently demanded proof of purchase, raising questions about the legitimacy of the loan application and the potential misuse of funds.
