The Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, has revealed that his office is conducting investigations into the Ghana Education Service (GES) and the Ghana Health Service (GHS) over allegations of widespread corruption involving certain staff members.
This disclosure was made at the opening session of the West Africa Regional Anti-Corruption Policy Dialogue held in Accra, an event organised by Transparency International Ghana.
According to the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), the investigation spans a range of offences across both sectors, from unnecessary surgical procedures to the illegal issuance of appointment letters and the validation of ghost names on public payrolls.
“I am glad that the Director-General of Ghana Health Service and the Director-General of Ghana Education Service are here. The two of you have walked into an ongoing investigation.
“I hope you know that it is not you. You were not there, but all I’m saying is that in reference to the practice, in reference to corrupt actors, we are seeing unbelievable forms and new forms, which really is mitigating against education generally and healthcare provision”
Kissi Agyebeng, Special Prosecutor
The OSP said the probe has uncovered disturbing developments in both education and healthcare delivery.
He added that while the institutional heads themselves, Prof. Ernest Kofi Davis and Dr. Samuel Kaba Akoriyea are not implicated, the structural corruption under their watch demands urgent attention and accountability.
“We are finding that some surgeons are performing surgery without the need for it just because they want the money,” the OSP stated.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor emphasized that several of such unwarranted surgeries and clinically unnecessary procedures have brought the healthcare sector under close scrutiny now.
This form of abuse, it said, reflects a systemic erosion of trust in public medical facilities, with serious consequences for patient welfare and the overall health system.
Fraud in the Education Sector
The OSP described a troubling pattern of misconduct within the education sector where more of the investigative work had been done compared to the Healthcare sector.
“We are finding officers claiming monies and facilities for nonexistent schools.
“We are finding that people are carrying around laptops – with the Director-General’s signature on them – giving out appointment letters wherever they go and purporting to be appointing teachers and pocketing the proceeds thereof”
Kissi Agyebeng, Special Prosecutor
He issued a caution to the Director-General of GES, noting that such fraudulent schemes might be attempted directly against him if not properly addressed.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor added that headteachers were found validating ghost names on payrolls, enabling the siphoning of public funds through salary payments to non-existent employees.
The OSP further stated that as part of its legal actions, six individuals were recently convicted by the High Court in Tamale under a plea bargain arrangement. These convictions, it said, form part of a broader strategy to expedite justice and demonstrate consequences for corrupt conduct.
The Special Prosecutor called for increased collaboration between institutional leaders and anti-corruption agencies to curb systemic abuse and the persistent drain of corruption on public resources.
“And I believe, as was said, that because of the neighborhood effect, this will not be too different from the situation in our neighboring countries,” the OSP stated, stressing the regional dimension of the problem.
Upon this premise, he urged immediate, decisive action from institutional leaders to safeguard the credibility of public institutions and ensure efficient delivery of essential services.
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