Ken Ofori-Atta, Others Slapped With 78 Corruption Charges by Office of the Special Prosecutor
- Former Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta, is among a group charged with 78 counts of corruption and corruption-related offences
- The charges are related to the scandal involving the Ghana Revenue Authority and Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited
- Ofori-Atta is being investigated by the special prosecutor for five cases of alleged corruption
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The Office of the Special Prosecutor has charged former Minister for Finance, Ken Ofori-Atta and seven others with 78 counts of corruption and corruption-related offences.
The charges are related to corruption in the revenue assurance contracts between the Ghana Revenue Authority and Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited.
Source: Getty Images
The special prosecutor shared some details of the charges in a statement.
The charges include conspiracy to commit the criminal offence of directly or indirectly influencing the procurement process to obtain an unfair advantage in the award of a procurement contract.
Ofori-Atta is being investigated by the special prosecutor for five cases.
Others facing charges are current and former Commissioner-Generals of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Dr. Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah and Emmanuel Kofi Nti, Ghana Revenue Authority officials Isaac Crentsil, Kwadwo Damoa and Ernest Akore, a former Technical Advisor at the Ministry of Finance.
What the special prosecutor said about SML
At a press conference in October, Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyabng held that contracts awarded to Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited were unlawful and influenced by personal gain.
He said evidence gathered by his office pointed to criminal conduct by some officials during the negotiation, approval, and implementation of the contracts.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor established that the contracts awarded to SML lacked genuine justification and were approved in clear violation of statutory procedures.
The probe further found that payments were made without adequate verification of work done, leading to significant financial losses to the state.
The Special Prosecutor noted that several key officials exploited their positions for self-serving interests, sidestepping due process in procurement and weakening accountability mechanisms within the authority and the Ministry of Finance.
A Fourth Estate investigation first questioned the impact of Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited, leading the firm to admit that it was not performing the advertised services that claimed to tackle under-reporting, diversion and dilution.
The investigation also questioned malfeasance in the procurement process to award Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited the contract.
Source: Getty Images
The company has disputed the findings, saying it was given a five-year contract instead.
SML further challenged claims that it takes $100 million annually from its contract.
In January 2024, then-President Akufo-Addo commissioned KPMG to investigate the contract following an exposé by the Fourth Estate, which questioned the impact of Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited in the downstream petroleum sector despite being awarded a 10-year $100 million contract.
About the corruption charges against Ofori-Atta
YEN.com.gh reported that the Office of the Special Prosecutor charged Ofori-Atta and seven others with 78 counts of corruption and corruption-related offences.
The charges are related to corruption in the revenue assurance contracts between the Ghana Revenue Authority and Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited.
Source: YEN.com.gh
