Lead counsel for the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, has cautioned against what he describes as political influence in the administration of justice, insisting that the judiciary must remain independent of the priorities of any government.

Speaking on JoyNews' Newsfile on Saturday, July 25, Samuel Atta Akyea argued that justice should never be tied to the tenure or political agenda of an administration, as he criticised what he called efforts to fast-track politically sensitive prosecutions.

"Justice hasn't gotten a political term of four years," Mr. Atta Akyea said.

He maintained that the justice system must not be driven by the political calendar or by public expectations for swift convictions.

"When some people are saying that let's run an ambulance justice delivery system, then we are saying that we are trying to placate Jubilee House," he stated.

Mr. Atta Akyea alleged that there is a growing perception that the government is eager to secure convictions in high-profile cases involving political figures to reinforce its anti-corruption credentials.

"They are interested, together with their constituency, that people should be jailed so that they will say that this is a very serious government. If you are very corrupt, they could deal with you," he said.

According to the veteran lawyer, such political expectations should have no bearing on judicial decision-making.

"That kind of frenzy in the NDC and in Jubilee House should not find discretion in a court of competent jurisdiction," he argued.

He stressed that judges should be guided solely by the facts, the evidence and the law, rather than by any perceived political need to secure convictions.

"A court of competent jurisdiction wouldn't want to care about the fact that, 'How many people can we jail so they will say that we are politically consequential?' No, that is not justice delivery," he said.

Mr. Atta Akyea's remarks come days after his client, Chairman Wontumi, was sentenced by the Accra High Court following his conviction for illegal mining activities.

On Monday, July 20, the Accra High Court sentenced Bernard Antwi-Boasiako to 20 years' imprisonment over illegal mining activities on the Samreboi concession in the Western Region.

Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, who presided over the Criminal Division of the High Court, delivered the sentence shortly after 11:40 a.m., concluding one of Ghana's most closely watched illegal mining prosecutions.

The court also imposed a fine of 10,000 penalty units, equivalent to GH¢120,000, with a default sentence of three years' imprisonment should the fine remain unpaid.