OSP saves GHc5.7 Billion, seizes assets as anti-corruption efforts intensify
11th February 2026
The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has reported saving the national coffers GH¢5.7 billion through the cancellation of the Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited (SML) contract and has seized assets in other high-profile corruption cases.
In its half-year report for the second half of 2025, the OSP commended President John Dramani Mahama for terminating the SML deal based on findings from its investigation. The cancellation, the report notes, prevented the state from incurring “false claims” that could have exceeded GH¢5.7 billion.
Investigations revealed that some of the accused, including former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta and former Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) commissioners, allegedly attempted to extract US$2.8 billion from the state through the contract.
The report describes the period as a defining moment for the OSP, marked by unprecedented political resistance, including a petition and a private member’s bill in Parliament aimed at abolishing the OSP and subsuming it under the Attorney General’s Department.
The SML contract, signed with the Ministry of Finance and GRA to provide revenue assurance in the petroleum and minerals sectors, was found to be based on false claims that the company possessed advanced audit technology. Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng noted, “There was no genuine need” for the contract, which also involved egregious statutory breaches and bypassed mandatory approvals.
The OSP announced the conclusion of investigations in the SML case, with the trial scheduled to begin on February 26, 2026. Former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta, who has been declared a fugitive twice, remains in ICE detention in the United States pending trial and the execution of Ghana’s extradition request.
The report detailed Ofori-Atta’s attempts to evade proceedings, including medical travel requests, missed deadlines, and a last-minute cancer diagnosis days before a scheduled interview, despite OSP observations confirming he was physically and psychologically healthy.
During this period, a private member’s bill in Parliament sought to abolish the OSP, describing it as a “drain on national resources.” The OSP’s report counters this claim, highlighting that the office has saved the state twenty times the total funds released to it since inception. “If the clearly contrived yardstick is measured against actual performance of every investigative institution, none would survive abolishment,” the report stated.
In addition to the SML case, the OSP has seized over GH¢100 million in assets, including fuel stations, luxury apartments in East Legon and Airport Residential Area, and prime land linked to former NPA CEO Mustapha Abdul-Hamid and nine others.
A joint OSP-Controller and Accountant General’s Department (CAGD) operation in the Northern Region also blocked GH¢2.85 million in unearned salaries tied to “ghost names” on the government payroll.
The OSP further identified systemic corruption risks in the Ghana Health Service, particularly its exclusive disinfection deal with LCB Worldwide at ports, which was suspended and audited, preventing estimated losses of GH¢345 million.
Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng concluded the report by stressing that anti-corruption efforts will be more effective if the OSP is protected from political and existential threats. He endorsed calls by the Constitution Review Committee to entrench the OSP in the Constitution as an independent, well-resourced anti-corruption commission.