NSA scandal: Court rejects Gifty Oware’s bid to pause criminal trial

The High Court in Accra has refused a request by former National Service Authority (NSA) Deputy Executive Director, Gifty Oware-Mensah, to halt her ongoing criminal trial pending an appeal.

The decision came on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, during a case management conference, where the court maintained that proceedings should continue despite the pending legal challenge.

The dispute revolves around an earlier court directive requiring the defence to submit a list of witnesses, in line with standard criminal trial procedures that mandate both prosecution and defence to disclose elements of their cases before trial.

Oware-Mensah’s legal team, led by Gary Nimako-Marfo, argued that the requirement infringes on her constitutional right to the presumption of innocence. They have since appealed to the Court of Appeal seeking to overturn the directive.

While awaiting the appeal, the defence initially applied for a stay of proceedings at the High Court, but the request was denied. A second application, linked to another pending appeal on the same matter, was also filed but not granted.

The defence further requested that the trial court refer the constitutional question to the Supreme Court, which the court declined, prompting another appeal and renewed application to halt the trial.

During proceedings, the court noted that not all parties had been properly served with documents relating to the latest application. The case has now been adjourned to April 15 to allow proper service.

Oware-Mensah faces allegations related to the creation of ghost names in the National Service Secretariat (NSA) database, reportedly causing the state financial losses exceeding GH¢38 million.

She was formally charged on October 22, 2026, with five counts, including willfully causing financial loss to the state, theft, money laundering, and using public office for personal gain.

Prosecutors allege that she generated approximately 9,934 fictitious National Service personnel during her tenure and unlawfully profited from allowances paid to these ghost names.

According to Attorney General Dr Dominic Ayine, the alleged actions resulted in financial losses of more than GH¢38 million to the government.