Government’s attitude suggested Huang had a ‘big’ backing – Lawyer

Edudzi Tamakloe stated that the manner in which the NPP administration dealt with her case, suggested she had a strong backing.

“Aisha Huang is a whole institution on her own and the unlawful, illegal activities are well documented and so the expectation was that the arrest of Aisha Huang was going to serve a message of deterrent to others. A message that tells other persons who have hijacked and have created a certain mafia organization around the exploitation of gold, illegal activities bothering mining.”

According to the legal practitioner, Aisha Huang should have been made to face the full rig of the law.

However, she only faced a lesser offense despite the series of unlawful and illegal activities she engaged in while in Ghana.

“In terms of the narration, from the beginning, she was not really charged for mining-related offense. It was more about immigration among others. So quite clearly even in terms of government policy, action towards her, it was towards a lesser offense.”

Senior Minister Osafo Maafo had said at a Townhall Meeting in the UK that the prosecution of the Chinese woman for her alleged crimes would not solve Ghana’s economic problems.

Osafo Maafo’s comments were followed by a backlash from members of the opposition who claimed that her release was to enable a barter between Ghana and China for some $2billion infrastructure funding - to which the Akufo-Addo government vehemently denied.



In his view, Lawyer Tamakloe stated that the decision by the government, who consequently stated that there were no funds to prosecute the suspected illegal foreign miner, was an unfair treatment to Ghanaians who are facing jail terms for similar offenses.

“They claimed that charging her was going to cost the state more. Where form that narration? I’ve been to the court in Koforidua. The circuit court below where Ghanaians, citizens of this country, were convicted 3 years, 2 years some 5 and as we speak they are still serving different jail terms in Ghanaian prisons. The state prosecuted them.

“How much did it cost the state in doing that prosecution? We have no problem prosecuting our own. When you have the Kingpin in that industry freed on this very claim frivolous, then the conversation changes.” He indicated.

He fumed, “Why? Is Aisha Huang better that Ghanaians serving jail term because of illegal mining? Definitely not.”