OSP’s trial of Ken Ofori-Atta and 7 others commences today

The long-anticipated trial of former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta and seven others is scheduled to begin today at Criminal Court 5 in Accra. The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) confirmed the commencement of the case in a post on its official Facebook page.

A total of seventy-eight charges have been levelled against the accused persons. Those standing trial include Ernest Darko Akore, aged sixty-seven, a former Chef de Cabinet at the Ministry of Finance; Emmanuel Kofi Nti, sixty-six, a former Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA); and Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, sixty-four, also a former Commissioner-General of the GRA.

Other accused persons are Isaac Crentsil, sixty-three (63), a former Commissioner of the Customs Division of the GRA; Kwadwo Damoah, sixty-five (63), another former Commissioner of the Customs Division; and Evans Adusei, sixty-two (62), identified as the Chief Executive Officer and principal decision-maker of SML.

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The company itself, Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited, previously known as Strategic Mobilisation Enhancement Limited, is also listed as an accused entity.

The charges come after several unsuccessful attempts by the OSP to secure the physical presence of Mr Ofori-Atta, who is reportedly outside the country. The Special Prosecutor has indicated that formal processes have begun to extradite him so that he can stand trial.

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According to the charge sheet, prosecutors believe the accused persons participated in a sophisticated and prolonged scheme involving high-level collusion between senior public officials and SML.

Investigators allege that the actions of the group resulted in the state losing more than GHS 1.4 billion through irregularly awarded contracts and payments for services that were never rendered.

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With its scale, the calibre of officials involved and the enormous sums cited, the case is expected to become one of the most significant corruption prosecutions in Ghana in recent years.