Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine, has disclosed that legal proceedings in the ongoing National Service Secretariat (NSS) financial scandal have been suspended following the discovery of substantial new evidence.
Addressing journalists at the Government Accountability Series on Monday, July 28, Dr. Ayine explained that the prosecution was set to begin last week but was paused after investigators found suspicious financial activity linked to an account at the Bank of Ghana.
He said, “The National Service Authority scandal case was due to be filed last week as promised, when we stumbled upon evidence of malfeasance involving an account at the Bank of Ghana to which had been transferred an amount of 189 million Ghana cedis. Of that amount, GH₵80 million remains unaccounted for.”
The Attorney-General further revealed that two cheques linked to the former Director-General of the National Service Authority, Mr. Osei Assibey, had been flagged.
The cheques, according to him, facilitated nearly GH₵2 million in withdrawals from the disputed account.
He noted that the seriousness of these discoveries necessitated a temporary halt in filing charges to allow for comprehensive documentation from key institutions.
“ We have therefore halted the filing of charges so as to await the receipt of the evidence from the relevant state agencies, including the Bank of Ghana, Ministry of Finance, and the Controlling and Accounting General’s Department,” he said.
Dr. Ayine confirmed that the Bank of Ghana has pledged full cooperation and has already begun the process of furnishing investigators with detailed account statements.
“In fact, as I speak, the Bank of Ghana signaled to me that this morning they are going to deliver the entire bank statement for my attention,” he stated.
