NSS Ghost Names Scandal: Gifty Oware-Mensah Granted GH₵10M Bail With 3 Sureties
- Gifty Oware-Mensah has been granted GH₵10 million bail with three sureties after appearing in court over the NSS ghost names scandal
- The former NSA Deputy Executive Director pleaded not guilty to five charges including stealing and money laundering
- The High Court on Friday, October 17, adjourned the case to October 22, 2025 after a medical excuse was submitted by her legal team
- Nabil Abubakar, a member of the NPP, shared his views on this in an interview with YEN.com.gh
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Former Deputy Executive Director of the National Service Authority (NSA), Gifty Oware-Mensah, has reportedly been granted GH₵10 million bail with three sureties.
The bail was secured after the embattled former NSA Deputy Director appeared in court on Wednesday, October 22, 2025, in the ongoing ghost names scandal case.
Source: Facebook
The High Court in Accra on Friday, October 17, 2025, adjourned the NSS ghost names scandal trial after lawyers for Gifty Oware-Mensah submitted a two-day medical excuse to the presiding judge, pleading for an adjournment.
The presiding judge consequently adjourned the case to a later date, allowing Oware-Mensah to recover and attend to her health issues.
Read the Facebook post below:
Charges against Gifty Oware-Mensah
Oware-Mensah is facing charges related to the National Service Scheme (NSS) ghost names scandal, which has led to significant financial losses for the state.
The scandal involves the alleged creation of thousands of ghost names on the NSS payroll, with millions of cedis allegedly stolen from the public purse.
Oware-Mensah is said to have allegedly misappropriated GH¢38,458,248.87 between February 2022 and March 2024 while overseeing finance, audit, and procurement at the NSS.
She was also alleged to have 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.
However, in court on Wednesday, Gifty Oware-Mensah pleaded not guilty to five charges, including stealing and money laundering, in the ₵38 million ghost names scandal.
If her lawyers can meet her bail conditions, Mrs Oware-Mensah would be allowed to go home and reappear in court at a later date to continue with the trial.
NPP member calls for due process
Reacting to this in a discussion with YEN.com.gh, Nabil Abubakar, a member of the NPP, called for due process in the case involving Gifty Oware-Mensah.
He added that justice must be served fairly—without political bias on either side.
"It’s been about ten months of this current government and nothing has happened with the ORAL that they made noise about. However, as in any democracy, high-profile cases often expose gaps in the justice system. What matters is that due process is followed and that justice is served fairly, without political bias on either side," he said.
Source: Instagram
Former NSA Director Osei Assibey Antwi charged
Gifty Oware-Mensah is not the only standing trial over the alleged NSS ghost names scandal.
The man she served under, Osei Assibey Antwi, the former Executive Director of the NSA, is also facing 14 counts of corruption charges.
The charges against Assibey Antwi include causing financial loss to the Republic of Ghana, stealing, and money laundering, in a case involving more than GH¢600 million.
According to a charge sheet, the former NSA boss was accused of authorising payments to over 60,000 non-existent national service personnel and misappropriating public funds during his tenure between August 2021 and February 2025.
He was also charged with 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).
Full list of suspects in NSS scandal
Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh reported earlier that 12 individuals would be charged in connection with a GH¢548 million payroll fraud scandal at the NSS.
The Attorney General confirmed that investigations have been concluded, with legal proceedings set to begin under the ORAL initiative.
New evidence led to the rearrest of one of the initial suspects, Stephen Kwabena Gyamfi, for allegedly siphoning funds over several years.
Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
