A former Deputy Director of the National Service Authority (NSA), Gifty Oware-Mensah, has been granted bail following her detention by the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) over the allegations of payroll fraud during her tenure at the Authority.

Sources at the NIB confirmed to JoyNews that Oware-Mensah, who is also an Executive Council member of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), was discharged on Saturday after several hours of questioning.

Read also: NSA scandal: NIB detains Gifty Oware-Mensah

However, the specific terms of her bail remain unclear.

Oware-Mensah’s arrest follows a widely reported investigation into the alleged embezzlement of funds at the NSA, specifically relating to fraudulent payroll activities that occurred while she was in office.

The case has attracted considerable public attention, with many closely watching the developments surrounding the former NSA official's involvement in the scandal.

Background

The NIB is probing her work at the NSS over allegations that thousands of ghost names were used to defraud the state of millions of cedis in allowances.

The government says it has uncovered a significant discrepancy in the National Service payroll, revealing 81,885 suspected ghost names.

This figure represents the difference between the actual number of active personnel and the payroll data submitted by the previous management of the National Service Authority (NSA).

According to the latest findings, there are currently 98,145 active service personnel, a stark contrast to the 180,030 names presented for allowance payment in 2024.

"This figure is 81,885 less than the 180,030 names presented by the previous management of the Authority for allowance payment in 2024," the statement read

The 81,885 names that have been flagged as potentially fraudulent or inflated could represent a major misuse of public funds.

As the Deputy Executive Director, Gifty Oware-Mensah had responsibility for administration and finance of the NSS and is expected to be a key witness in the ongoing investigations.

The alleged payroll fraud is reported to have cost the state a staggering GHȼ50 million each month.

It is unclear how long the alleged scheme went on.

The NIB recently detained and questioned Kwaku Ohene Djan, also a former Deputy Executive Director of the National Service Authority, over the raging allegations.

According to the Fourth Estate, which made the revelation, top officials of the NSA created thousands of ghost names and accounts presented as persons serving the nation under the scheme and collecting monthly allowances through this account, which ends up in their personal pockets.