The arrest and ongoing detention of Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, has drawn criticism from a senior academic at the University of Ghana, who described the conduct of state agencies as inhumane.

Speaking in an interview on TV3 on May 31, 2025, Dr. Joshua Jebuntie Zaato, a policy analyst and senior lecturer at the University’s Political Science Department, expressed concern over what he described as the excessive nature of Wontumi’s arrest and subsequent handling.

“I am not against state agencies prosecuting perceived corrupt persons, but the treatment of Wontumi is inhumane. This is not the reset they want us to believe.”

Chairman Wontumi was arrested on May 27 by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and later handed over to the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO). On May 28, he was granted bail of GH¢50 million with two justified sureties. However, he remains in custody due to a pending court application challenging the bail conditions.