The state has filed an amended charge sheet in the criminal case against former National Service Authority (NSA) Executive Director Osei Assibey Antwi, increasing the number of charges from 14 to 21 and revising key particulars of the alleged offences.
Mr. Assibey Antwi, who led the NSA from September 2021 to January 2025, pleaded not guilty to all counts.
A key revision in the case concerns the principal allegation of causing financial loss to the state. The original charge claimed that Mr. Assibey Antwi authorised payments totalling GH¢500,861,744.02 to over 60,000 alleged ghost national service personnel.
The amended charge reduces the alleged loss to GH¢431,761,556.76, specifying that the payments were made to “non-service personnel and unverified individuals” rather than the previously stated “over 60,000 ghost names”.
On the alleged misuse of authority, the prosecution claims Mr. Assibey Antwi authorised personnel lists submitted to the Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems Limited for monthly disbursements. As principal spending officer and signatory to NSA accounts, he oversaw day-to-day operations and approvals for payments to both verified personnel and marketplace vendors.
Several counts further allege that funds meant for service personnel were diverted to an e-zwich card registered in Mr. Assibey Antwi’s name, which reportedly received GH¢8,256,000 between 2022 and 2024. The card was not disclosed during the office handover and initially denied during questioning but was later recovered from his Dome residence on March 25, 2025, with evidence of personal withdrawals.
The amended charge sheet also alleges that payments were made to NSA marketplace vendors without services being rendered.
Some vendors are said to have refunded money directly to Mr. Assibey Antwi in cash. One cited example is GH¢7,704,880.92 allegedly paid to Direct Savings and Loans despite no services being provided.
Additional counts relate to the Sekyere-Kumawu Economic Enclave (Farm) Project, where GH¢106 million was transferred from the NSA Control Account between August 2022 and June 2024. Contracts were awarded for land clearing and irrigation, but prosecutors allege the project failed to deliver value for money, resulting in an estimated loss of GH¢61,289,843.30.
Other new charges include allegations of improper payment of public funds under the Public Financial Management Act, 2016 (Act 921), as well as stealing, causing financial loss to the Republic, and money laundering.
