Governing National Democratic Congress (NDC)'s James Agbey has urged President John Mahama not to grant clemency to Ashanti Regional NPP Chairman Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi.

He warns that such a move could provoke a backlash from the party’s grassroots.

In a public statement issued on Wednesday, July 29, Mr Agbey said recent appeals for presidential mercy were premature and should not influence the legal process.

His comments come after Wontumi’s spokesperson, Dr Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, publicly appealed to President Mahama to forgive the embattled NPP chairman over remarks made against the President and his family during the 2024 election campaign.

“I want to make an appeal and apologise to President Mahama if, at any stage, Wontumi went too far in the making of statements about his wife and children leading up to the 2024 elections. I ask him to show mercy and forgiveness,” Dr Boakye-Danquah told Joy News.

Mr Agbey dismissed the ongoing campaign for clemency, describing it as “complete tittle-tattle.”

According to him, Wontumi has “not even served a fraction of his time” and should not yet be the subject of discussions about a presidential pardon.

He argued that while Wontumi could become eligible for clemency in the future, now was not the appropriate time, especially when, in his view, the New Patriotic Party remained divided over whether to accept his conviction or portray him as a political prisoner.

Mr Agbey also rejected suggestions that Wontumi deserved special treatment because of his political status.

“For God's sake, it is not President Mahama who incarcerated Wontumi - the courts did,” he stated.

He maintained that anyone seeking presidential clemency should be subjected to the same legal standards as every other prisoner, including serving the required portion of a sentence before being considered.

Mr Agbey further argued that Wontumi “is not a political prisoner but a common criminal found culpable by a court of competent jurisdiction of engaging in criminal conduct,” adding that he “does not deserve sympathy, empathy and clemency for his galamsey-related crimes.”

The NDC operative warned President Mahama against yielding to public pressure.

“President Mahama must not heed this call lest he will face the wrath of the grassroots membership of the National Democratic Congress (NDC),” he said.

He argued that many communities continue to suffer the environmental consequences of illegal mining and insisted that those found guilty of such offences must face the full consequences of the law.

Mr Agbey noted that more than 120 people are currently serving prison sentences for galamsey-related offences and said Wontumi should not receive preferential treatment.

He also pointed to previous administrations, saying former Presidents John Agyekum Kufuor and Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo did not pardon several high-profile convicts despite appeals.

Mr Agbey urged President Mahama to follow the same path and “not be stampeded to truncate the due process in the Wontumi case.”