Former Finance Minister Kenneth Ofori-Atta and seven others face 78 charges over contracts awarded to Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited (SML).
Here is all you need to know about the case:
Kenneth Ofori-Atta (A1) was the Minister of Finance at all material times in relation to him.
Ernest Darko Akore (A2) was the Chef de Cabinet of Kenneth Ofori-Atta (A1) in his capacity as Minister of Finance at all material times in relation to him.
Emmanuel Kofi Nti (A3) was the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority at all material times in relation to him.
Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah (A4) was the Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority at all material times in relation to him.
Isaac Crentsil (A5) was the Commissioner of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority at all material times in relation to him.
Kwadwo Damoah (A6) was the Commissioner of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority at all material times in relation to him.
Evans Adusei (A7) is the Chief Executive, beneficial owner, and controlling mind of SML (A8).
SML (A8) is a company registered in Ghana, formerly known as Strategic Mobilisation Enhancement Limited.
The accused persons conspired and performed acts in furtherance of a plan to directly and indirectly influence the procurement process to obtain an unfair advantage for SML (A8) in the award of contracts for transaction audit services, external price verification, measurement audit of downstream petroleum products, upstream petroleum audit services, and minerals audit services on behalf of the Government of Ghana through the Ministry of Finance and the Ghana Revenue Authority.
The criminal enterprise commenced in 2017 with Mr Ofori-Atta (A1), Mr Nti (A3), Mr Adusei (A7), and SML (A8), with the other accused persons joining at various times. The enterprise, according to the prosecution, had no genuine need for contracting SML (A8). The contracts were obtained through self-serving patronage, sponsorship, and promotion by Mr Ofori-Atta (A1), Mr Akore (A2), Mr Nti (A3), Mr Owusu-Amoah (A4), Mr Crentsil (A5), and Mr Damoah (A6) based on false and unverified claims.
The prosecution states that the contracts disregarded mandatory statutory approvals from Parliament and the Public Procurement Authority. Mr Ofori-Atta (A1), Mr Nti (A3), Mr Owusu-Amoah (A4), Mr Crentsil (A5), and Mr Damoah (A6) allegedly abused their offices for private benefit by allowing payments to SML (A8) without proper monitoring or verification of performance.
The state claims that this arrangement allowed SML (A8) to pretend to perform the services under the contracts, resulting in a financial loss of about GH¢1,436,249,828.53 to the Republic. Had the enterprise continued, prosecutors say the accused intended that an additional estimated US$2,799,604,864.71 be paid to SML (A8) over five years without the mandatory statutory authorisation by Parliament.
The accused persons based their actions on claims that SML (A8) possessed technical expertise and capability that increased revenue for the Republic, and that the company had exclusive patented technology for value chain transaction audits, external price verification, and measurement audit services in the downstream petroleum, upstream petroleum, and minerals sectors. The prosecution says these claims were false.
Based on the above, the Accused Persons have been charged before the Criminal Division of the High Court.
