NSA Corruption Scandal: Two Top Officials Charged with Over GH¢638m Fraud

October 13, 2025

Two former top officials of the National Service Authority (NSA) have been arraigned before the High Court in Accra on separate but related charges involving massive financial fraud totaling over GH¢638 million.

Former Executive Director Faces GH¢600m Charges

Osei Assibey Antwi, the former Executive Director of the NSA, has been charged with 14 counts including causing financial loss to the Republic, stealing, and money laundering in a case involving more than GH¢600 million.

According to the charge sheet filed at the High Court in Accra, Mr. Assibey Antwi is accused of authorizing payments to over 60,000 non-existent national service personnel and misappropriating public funds during his tenure between August 2021 and February 2025.

He is facing multiple counts under sections 179A(1) and 124(1) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and section 1(2)(c) of the Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2020 (Act 1044).

Ghost Names and Unauthorized Payments

On Count One, prosecutors allege that the former NSA boss willfully caused financial loss of GH¢500,861,744.02 to the Republic by authorizing the payment of allowances to over 60,000 "ghost" service personnel between August 2021 and February 2025.

He also faces six counts of stealing, with the prosecution claiming that between August 2023 and May 2024, he dishonestly appropriated various sums of money totaling several million cedis belonging to the National Service Authority.

The alleged thefts include:

• GH¢3.6 million on August 22, 2023
• GH¢516,000 each on September 11, October 26, and November 23, 2023
• GH¢1.03 million on December 18, 2023
• GH¢2.06 million on May 14, 2024

Transfers to Personal Account

Prosecutors further allege that between January 2022 and December 2024, Mr. Assibey Antwi caused an additional GH¢8.26 million loss to the state by authorizing transfers from the NSA's Control Account to his personal e-zwich card account (No. 1177042059).

This transaction also forms the basis of a money laundering charge, with the state alleging that he knowingly took possession of funds that were proceeds of unlawful activity.

Kumawu Farm Project Allegations

The charge sheet also cites unauthorized withdrawals from the Kumawu Farm Project account (No. 1018631542212), amounting to GH¢74 million, which prosecutors say were not used for their intended purpose.

Specifically, Mr. Assibey Antwi is accused of withdrawing GH¢55 million on September 30, 2022, GH¢15 million on October 20, 2023, and GH¢4 million on January 24, 2024—all allegedly without expending the funds on the project.

Deputy Executive Director Charged with GH¢38m Theft

In a related case, Gifty Oware-Mensah, a former Deputy Executive Director of the NSA, has been arraigned on multiple charges including stealing, causing financial loss to the state, money laundering, and abuse of public office.

According to the Attorney-General's Department, Oware-Mensah allegedly misappropriated a total of GH¢38,458,248.87 between February 2022 and March 2024 while overseeing finance, audit, and procurement at the NSA.

Fake Hire-Purchase Scheme

Prosecutors said she dishonestly transferred GH¢31.5 million from a loan facility meant to support National Service Personnel into the account of her private company, Blocks of Life Consult, under the pretext of supplying goods on a hire-purchase basis.

Investigations later revealed that no such goods were supplied, and the names used to secure the loan were "ghost names" she had generated from the NSA's internal system.

The funds were secured through an agreement with the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB), with repayments expected to be deducted from the allowances of 9,934 National Service Personnel—all of whom were later discovered to be fictitious.

Part of the misappropriated funds was traced to Amaecom Global Company, where Oware-Mensah was also a director, and other companies linked to her.

Charges Against Oware-Mensah

The charges include:

• Stealing GH¢31,502,091.40 belonging to the National Service Authority
• Willfully causing financial loss to the state through the fake hire-purchase arrangement
• Abuse of public office for personal gain
• Money laundering through the transfer of funds into personal and affiliated accounts

Investigation Triggered by Intelligence Reports

Investigations into both cases were triggered by the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) following reports of corruption and financial irregularities at the NSA.

Both Mr. Assibey Antwi, who served as Executive Director of the NSA until early 2025, and Ms. Oware-Mensah have not yet entered pleas. The cases are expected to be heard at the Accra High Court, where prosecutors will present evidence to support the charges.

The scandal has exposed serious lapses in oversight and financial controls at the National Service Authority, raising questions about the management of public funds and the welfare of genuine national service personnel.