Accra: Mrs. Gifty Oware-Mensah, a former Deputy Director of the National Service Authority (NSA), is facing five counts of criminal charges brought forth by the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice. These charges include stealing, willfully causing financial loss, using public office for profit, and money laundering.

According to Ghana News Agency, the brief facts reveal that Mrs. Oware-Mensah, who was in charge of the NSA's Finance and Procurement Departments, allegedly devised an elaborate scheme involving the NSA's 'marketplace' platform. This system was intended to provide hire-purchase services to service personnel but was reportedly exploited by Mrs. Oware-Mensah for fraudulent activities.

The prosecution claims that she managed to seize control of a private entity, Blocks of Life Consult, and fabricated a list of 9,934 ghost names from the NSA's system. With these fictitious identities, she approached the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB), misrepresenting that her company had delivered goods to these non-existent individuals and required a loan, using their supposed allowances as collateral.

This deceitful maneuver led to the establishment of a loan agreement between ADB and the NSA, ultimately resulting in a GHS31.5 million disbursement directly into her company's account. Subsequently, Mrs. Oware-Mensah transferred more than GHS22.9 million from this amount to another company, where she held a Directorial position.

The fact sheets further disclose that no goods were ever delivered to any service personnel. With the addition of accrued interest, her alleged actions resulted in a total financial loss of GHS38,458,248.87 to the State.