Ofori-Atta, others face 78 counts of corruption-related offences

Ghana’s accountability architecture entered a new escalation phase as the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) unveiled a sweeping 78-count charge sheet targeting former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta, private contractor Strategic Mobilisation Ltd (SML), and six senior ex-officials of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).

The charge sheet captures what the OSP characterises as a multi-year, coordinated influence network that allegedly redirected state resources through irregular procurement pathways, questionable technical representations, and performance-light commercial arrangements.

The charge list aggregates a cross-section of public-sector heavyweights:

Ernest Darko Akore (67) – Chief de Cabinet, Ministry of Finance

Emmanuel Kofi Nti (66) – Former Commissioner-General, GRA

Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah (64) – Former Commissioner-General, GRA

Isaac Crentsil (63) – Former Commissioner, Customs Division

Kwadwo Damoah (65) – Former Commissioner, Customs Division

Evans Adusei (62) – Beneficial owner and CEO of SML

Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Ltd – Corporate defendant

The former Minister remains outside Ghana’s jurisdiction, prompting the OSP to activate international law-enforcement protocols to secure his return.

Ahead of the formal charges, President John Mahama mandated the immediate termination of all SML contractual engagements on 31 October. The directive followed the OSP’s investigative brief and aligned with the administration’s positioning around transparency, compliance discipline, and fiscal stewardship.

The Ministry of Finance has been tasked to operationalise the termination through full-stack legal and procurement conformity, signalling a zero-defect posture on procedural integrity.

The prosecution outlines a 2017–2024 operational window, framing the conduct as an intentional architecture designed to secure high-value state contracts for SML through systemic bypass of controls. The alleged enterprise involved:

Procurement Rule Evasion

Awarding contracts via single-source arrangements without statutory clearance from the Public Procurement Authority (PPA) Board or, where required, Parliamentary oversight.

Misrepresentation of Technical Capacity

Deploying claims of proprietary technology, external backing from COTECNA S.A., and specialised domain capabilities that, according to investigators, had no factual basis.

Automatic Payment Activation

Embedding SML into an auto-payment workflow that triggered substantial disbursements without commensurate service verification, output audits, or value-for-money assessments.

Abuse of Public Office

Alleged leveraging of state authority for the private commercial advantage of SML and its controlling mind, Evans Adusei.

The OSP’s filings trace multiple contract streams that collectively produced over GHS 1.4 billion in alleged fiscal leakage. In addition:

A pending upstream petroleum and minerals audit contract valued at US$2.79 billion—signed but not yet activated—was flagged as a potential catastrophic future loss had payments commenced.