Northern Development Authority officials convicted in Ghana corruption case

Northern Development Authority Office of the Special Prosecutor procurement corruption Tamale High Court Ghana

A High Court in Tamale has convicted four individuals, including three former executives of the Northern Development Authority (NDA) and a private contractor, on seven counts of corruption and procurement-related offences. The convicts are former NDA Chief Executive Sumaila Abdul-Rahman, former Deputy Chief Executives Stephen Yir-Eru Engmen and Patrick Seidu, and Andrew Kuundaari, CEO of A&QS Consortium Limited.

The charges involved conspiracy to influence procurement processes and corruption related to contracts under the government’s Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP). The prosecution was led by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) following a complaint by legal practitioner Martin Kpebu.

Rather than imposing custodial sentences, the court fined each convict 1,000 penalty units for each count. The judge cited the advanced age of the defendants and the OSP’s swift intervention, which prevented unlawful payments and ensured no financial loss to the state, as mitigating factors. Legal practitioner Martin Kpebu criticized the ruling, describing the fines as a “slap on the wrist” and arguing for prison time to serve as a stronger deterrent.