An investigator has told the High Court that 63,673 individuals whose identities could not be verified received National Service allowances despite performing no work during the 2023 and 2024 service periods.
Detective Sergeant Collins Woode, a Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) investigator, disclosed this while testifying as the fourth prosecution witness in the trial of former National Service Authority Deputy Executive Director Gifty Oware.
He said a forensic analysis of the authority’s Central Management System revealed that the names had received allowances through the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB).
According to him, the names were included in a list submitted by Oware to ADB for the processing of monthly payments.
Led in evidence by Director of Public Prosecutions Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa, Detective Sergeant Woode explained that investigators retrieved and examined the authority’s database, which validates and enrols national service personnel and generates payroll for allowance payments.
“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.
He said the names had no verifiable identities but consistently received allowances through the bank.
The investigator used spreadsheets and other documents projected in court to explain the findings. The materials were included among the exhibits attached to his witness statement.
He further told the court that investigators traced the payment list submitted to ADB to Oware, while the forensic analysis established a direct link between the insertion of the names into the system and the processing of payment vouchers.
The defence is expected to cross-examine Detective Sergeant Woode as the trial continues.
