Former NSA officials are surcharged by the auditor general, which also mandates a GH¢2.4 billion repayment.
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The Auditor-General (A-G) has charged former top executives of the National Service Authority (NSA) and their accomplices in a move to recover GH¢2.4 billion illegally paid from state coffers.
Following a Technical and Forensic Audit of the NSA systems, which the office describes as a “well-orchestrated conspiracy” to systematically defraud the state, the Auditor-General, Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu, has written to the officers involved to pay the amounts totalling GH¢2.4 billion in lieu of justification.
The Daily Graphic obtained a copy of the audit report covering January 2018 to December 2024, which was submitted to Parliament on October 1, 2025.
Osei Assibey Antwi, the director-general of the authority, and Gifty Oware-Mensah, his deputy, were found to be at the centre of a network of fraudulent activities, according to Mr Asiedu’s exclusive interview.
The Auditor-General declared, “The evidence points to a deliberate and coordinated effort to create channels for the illegal syphoning of funds meant for National Service Personnel (NSP).”
“We have a duty to recover every pesewa for the state by using all legal authority, especially Article 187(7) of the 1992 Constitution,” he continued.
He explained that the surcharge procedure is separate from any criminal court proceedings in accordance with Article 187(7) of the constitution.
It will therefore run concurrently with the Attorney-General’s prosecution of the same individuals in court.
Approximately GH¢169 million was paid to Direct Savings and Loans Ltd, under vendor names “DSLCONSUM” or “NSSDSLCOUM” through 151 transactions.
The study shows catastrophic control failures, including no written agreements with suppliers, no evidence of items delivered, no board permission for payments, and a project that was wholly outside of the NSA’s authority.
A main suspect in the plan, a Kumasi woman, allegedly admitted to constantly extracting funds and giving them over to the NSA’s Deputy Director-General, Madam Oware-Mensah.
According to reports, the developer of the marketplace platform has also acknowledged his involvement.
Senior NSA executives fraudulently enrolled as military personnel in order to receive allowances, according to the audit.
Mr. Antwi signed up for voluntary national duty and paid himself GH¢516,000 each month for 16 months, for a total of GH¢8.2 million.
In a similar vein, the previous Deputy Director-General obtained her full salary as a deputy CEO while registering as an NSS employee and receiving monthly allowances.
“This is a clear case of conflict of interest and an abuse of office for personal gain. How can those mandated to oversee the scheme turn themselves into beneficiaries?” the Auditor-General questioned.
“The audit report is uncompromising. It demands the NSA provide full documentation to justify the GH¢301.6 million vendor payments, failing which the amount would be recovered”.
“In the absence of appropriate justification, the persons involved would be surcharged with the amount of GH¢301.6 million at the current Bank of Ghana interest rate,” the report states.
The Daily Graphic was informed by the Auditor-General that the surcharge procedure against Mr. Assibey Antwi, Mrs. Oware-Mensah, and the involved merchants had begun.
The audit also exposed payments to “ineligible personnel,” as the authority enrolled and paid GH¢1.97 million in allowances to individuals who were either above 60 or under the eligible age of 18.
The audit revealed that some of the individuals on the NSA payroll were 1,027 years old, which is an unbelievable discovery.
Payments of GH¢2.2 million for “monitoring and evaluation” services to two businesses controlled by a sitting NSA Board Member were also highlighted in the report as a blatant violation of public service ethics and procurement laws.
Source: newsthemegh.com
