Accra High Court Dismisses Gifty Oware-Mensah’s Application to Halt GH₵38m Ghost Names Trial

Accra High Court Dismisses Gifty Oware-Mensah’s Application to Halt GH₵38m Ghost Names Trial

  • Gifty Oware-Mensah's request to halt her ghost names trial has been dismissed by the Accra High Court
  • The former NSA deputy director is accused of misappropriating funds meant for National Service Personnel
  • She spent 20 days in NIB custody after failing to meet bail conditions before her release in November 2025

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The Accra High Court has reportedly dismissed an application by the former Deputy Executive Director of the National Service Authority (NSA), Gifty Oware-Mensah, seeking to halt the ongoing ghost names trial.

In the application, she appealed to the court to stop the trial and refer the case to the Supreme Court.

Gifty Oware-Mensah, NSS scandal, payroll fraud,Former Deputy Executive Director, NSA, High Court
The Accra High Court dismisses former NSA Deputy Executive Director Gifty Oware-Mensah’s application to halt the GH₵38m ghost names trial. Photo credit: UGC.
Source: Facebook

She also reportedly described the case against her as lacking merit.

However, according to the caption accompanying a news card shared on social media by GHOne TV, the High Court directed her to comply with witness disclosure rules as proceedings will continue.

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The case has been adjourned to Wednesday, February 18, 2026, for the continuation of the trial.

Read the Instagram post about the latest update in the case below:

What is the case against Gifty Oware-Mensah?

Gifty Oware-Mensah is facing charges related to the 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 siphoned from the public purse.

She is accused of misappropriating GH₵38,458,248.87 between February 2022 and March 2024 while overseeing finance, audit, and procurement at the NSS.

Oware-Mensah is 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.

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In court on October 22, 2025, the former NSA Deputy Executive Director pleaded not guilty to five charges, including stealing and money laundering, in the ghost names scandal.

Gifty Oware-Mensah spends 20 days in prison

The former NSA Deputy Executive Director was arrested over the ghost names scandal.

She was granted bail of GH₵10 million with three sureties after appearing in court with her lawyers on October 22, 2025.

However, after failing to meet the bail conditions, she was kept in the custody of the National Investigation Bureau (NIB) for 20 days before her release on Tuesday, November 11, 2025.

The controversial case resumes later this month, with Ghanaians seeking to witness the closure of the matter.

Dr Dominic Ayine, Attorney General, NSS scandal, payroll fraud, Gifty Oware-Mensah, Mustapha Ussif
Ghana's Attorney General, Dr Dominic Ayine, releases the full list of suspects in the GH¢548M NSS payroll fraud scandal. Photo credit: UGC.
Source: UGC

Suspects in NSS scandal released

In a related development, YEN.com.gh reported that 12 individuals, including former officials, were charged in connection with a GH¢548 million NSS payroll scandal.

Attorney General and the Minister for Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, said that investigations had since concluded, with the legal proceedings set to begin under the ORAL initiative.

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Meanwhile, reported new evidence led to the rearrest of one of the initial suspects, Stephen Kwabena Gyamfi, for allegedly siphoning state funds over a period of several years.

Proofreading by Bruce Douglas, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.

Source: YEN.com.gh

Authors:
Salifu Bagulube Moro avatar

Salifu Bagulube Moro (Human-Interest Editor) Salifu Bagulube Moro is a Current Affairs Editor at YEN.com.gh. He has over five years of experience in journalism. He graduated from the Ghana Institute of Journalism in 2018, where he obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Studies with a specialization in Journalism. Salifu previously worked with Opera News as a Content Management Systems (CMS) Editor. He also worked as an Online Reporter for the Ghanatalksbusiness.com news portal, as well as with the Graphic Communications Group Limited as a National Service Person. Salifu joined YEN.com.gh in 2024. Email: salifu.moro@yen.com.gh.