Former Deputy Executive Director of the National Service Authority (NSA), Gifty Oware-Mensah, has been granted bail of GH¢10 million by the Accra High Court following her latest appearance on October 22.
She has been formally charged with five counts, including willfully causing financial loss to the state, stealing, money laundering, and using public office for profit. The charges stem from an alleged misappropriation of funds during her tenure at the NSA.
The case comes amid a deepening scandal within the National Service Authority, which has been under investigation for months over irregularities in its payroll system. A verification exercise reportedly revealed that, although over 180,000 individuals were listed as service personnel, only about 98,000 were confirmed to be genuine.
The discrepancy suggested that the remaining names were “ghost personnel,” leading to the loss of an estimated GH¢653 million in state funds.
However, new findings from a forensic audit by the Auditor-General indicate that the financial damage could be even greater. The Attorney-General announced that the total amount involved in the “ghost names” scandal has risen to GH¢2.2 billion, far exceeding the initial estimate of GH¢548 million.
The Attorney-General’s office, according to a report, says it plans to amend the charge sheet to reflect the updated figures as investigations continue.
