KEY POINTS
- NSS scandal reveals ex-chief took GH¢8.2 million in payments.
- Audit links funds to fraudulent volunteer posting and ghost records.
- Attorney-general says prosecution will follow after investigations.
A forensic audit has uncovered startling details in Ghana’s National Service Authority, alleging that former Director-General Osei Assibey Antwi received more than GH¢8.2 million in payments while simultaneously being listed as a volunteer.
NSS scandal exposes ghost payments trail
According to auditors, Assibey Antwi was assigned an EZWICH card and posted as a volunteer to Greater Accra during the 2022/2023 service year, a year after taking office as NSA chief.
Payroll records, however, showed him listed under Kumawu Farms in Ashanti Region, a farming project launched by his administration.
The audit said he received GH¢516,000 monthly over 16 months, totaling GH¢8,256,000 — a sum equivalent to the monthly allowances of more than 700 service personnel.
NSS scandal deepens with attorney general’s findings
Accoridng to MyJoyOnline, Attorney-General Dominic Ayine confirmed the findings, saying investigators discovered the EZWICH card in Assibey Antwi’s home during a search. “He personally received these funds,” Ayine said, linking the case to the broader Operation Recover All Loot campaign, which has uncovered financial irregularities exceeding GH¢548 million.
The revelations align with previous investigative reporting by The Fourth Estate, which exposed thousands of ghost names on the service payroll, prompting petitions to Ghana’s anti-graft bodies. Ayine credited the media outlet’s work for laying the foundation for prosecutions.
