A forensic investigation into the operations of the National Service Authority has uncovered 63,673 allegedly fictitious names that received government funded allowances despite having no record of performing national service duties, a prosecution witness has told an Accra court.
The revelation emerged during the trial of former National Service Authority Deputy Executive Director, Gifty Oware, where Detective Sergeant Collins Woode, a Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) investigator, testified that a detailed examination of the Authority’s Central Management System identified thousands of questionable beneficiaries who collected allowances during the 2023 and 2024 service periods.
Appearing as the fourth prosecution witness, Detective Sergeant Woode explained that the findings resulted from a forensic examination of the Authority’s electronic database, which is responsible for validating and registering national service personnel as well as generating payroll information for the payment of their monthly allowances.
Led in his testimony by Director of Public Prosecutions Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa, the investigator told the court that his team retrieved the relevant information from the system and subjected the records to detailed analysis, uncovering what he described as 63,673 faceless beneficiaries who received payments without undertaking any identifiable work.
“We had already done an analysis of the whole central management system and found out that 63,673 faceless names were found in the central management system to have received allowances for no work done,” he told the court.
According to the investigator, the questionable entries lacked verifiable personal identities but were nevertheless maintained on the payment system and received monthly allowances through the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB).
Detective Sergeant Woode further disclosed that the names appeared on a payment schedule submitted to ADB by the accused person for the processing of monthly allowance payments.
Using spreadsheets and other documentary materials displayed before the court, he systematically explained the investigative team’s findings and demonstrated how the questionable entries appeared within the Authority’s records. The documents, which were attached to his witness statement, were presented as part of the evidence supporting the prosecution’s case.
He further testified that investigators traced the payment schedule submitted to the bank to the accused person, while the forensic examination established what he described as a direct connection between the introduction of the questionable names into the Central Management System and the subsequent preparation and processing of payment vouchers.
The testimony introduces significant documentary and digital evidence into the prosecution’s case, particularly concerning the alleged manipulation of the National Service Authority’s registration and payment processes.
The proceedings are expected to continue with the defence given the opportunity to cross examine Detective Sergeant Woode on his findings, investigative methods and the conclusions drawn from the forensic examination.
The allegations remain matters before the court, and the accused person is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in accordance with the law.
