Justice Francis Apangabuno Achibonga of the Accra High Court Criminal Division has dismissed an application by former Attorney-General Godfred Yeboah Dame seeking to strike down the charge sheet against his client, former National Food Buffer Stock Company Chief Executive Officer Abdul-Wahab Hanan Aludiba, as defective.
The ruling, delivered in the ongoing case of The Republic v Hanan Aludiba and Another, clears the way for the trial to begin on July 29, 2026, when the state is expected to call its first prosecution witness.
According to updates from the courtroom, Justice Achibonga dismissed all three grounds on which Dame’s application was based, while finding that only Count 14 of the charge sheet was defective. The judge subsequently ordered the prosecution to amend both Count 9 and Count 14 to address the deficiencies identified in the ruling.
Dame indicated his disagreement with the ruling and requested an adjournment for further hearing, maintaining his position that the prosecution needed to amend the counts as directed.
Justice Achibonga responded by warning that failure to amend the counts would carry consequences, while making clear that he did not believe this issue should prevent the trial from proceeding as scheduled.
Motion Sought to Strike Out Entire Charge Sheet
The application dismissed by the court had originally sought a far more sweeping outcome than the eventual ruling allowed. According to Dr Justice Srem Sai, Deputy Attorney General and Minister for Justice, lawyers for Hanan Aludiba moved a motion earlier in proceedings asking the court to strike out the entire charge sheet against their client.
He explained that the defence based this request on claims that the charges against Hanan Aludiba were too unclear for his legal team to mount an effective defence. “They do not understand the crimes the 1st Accused Person is accused of committing and, as a result, are unable to defend him,” he said.
Dr Srem Sai noted that the second accused person in the case did not support the motion, while the state formally opposed it. He confirmed that the motion had delayed the start of the trial the previous week, with the court reserving its ruling for delivery the following day.
A Case Rooted in Alleged Free SHS Fund Diversion
The charges against Hanan Aludiba stem from allegations that he, alongside his wife Faiza Seidu Wuni and three others, stole and laundered more than GH¢78 million in public funds.
Prosecutors allege that the diverted money had originally been intended to purchase and supply food items for the school feeding component of the Free Senior High School programme. The accused face 24 criminal counts in total, including defrauding by false pretences, intentionally dissipating public funds, and using public office for personal profit.
Investigations by the Economic and Organised Crime Office also linked the couple to luxury properties in Airport Hills, Labone and Tamale, properties prosecutors argue reflect unexplained wealth connected to the alleged scheme.
Bail Conditions and a Contested Airport Arrest
Both Hanan Aludiba and his wife pleaded not guilty to all charges following their initial appearance in court. The Accra High Court granted Hanan Aludiba bail of GH¢100 million, while his wife received bail set at GH¢50 million.
The case took a dramatic turn on July 4, 2026, when Hanan Aludiba was arrested at the Accra International Airport. The state alleged he was attempting to flee the country and illegally empty his frozen bank accounts.
His legal team disputed this characterisation, insisting he was travelling to London for medical treatment under a valid court-approved order. EOCO subsequently released him on July 8, 2026.
Travel Order Dispute Resolved Before Charge Sheet Ruling
Prior to the charge sheet ruling, the case saw another significant development on July 16, 2026, when the Accra High Court struck out a separate application by the Attorney-General seeking to revoke Hanan Aludiba’s permission to travel abroad.
The presiding judge ruled that the travel order had already naturally lapsed, since its expiration date of July 12 had already passed by the time the application was heard.
Beyond the motion to strike out the entire charge sheet, Hanan Aludiba’s legal team, led by Dame, had separately petitioned the High Court to strike out 16 of the 20 primary charges brought against him.
The defence argued that the state’s charge sheet was fatally defective, duplicative and too vague to guarantee a fair trial, a position that formed the basis for the application Justice Achibonga has now largely dismissed.
Amid these courtroom developments, Hanan Aludiba took his grievances beyond the court system, formally petitioning the Ministry of Justice on July 17, 2026. In the petition, he accused EOCO and state security agencies of sustained harassment, illegal asset seizures and human rights violations connected to the investigation and prosecution against him.
Trial Set to Proceed Despite Ongoing Disputes
With Justice Achibonga’s ruling now delivered and the prosecution ordered to amend the two affected counts, the case moves toward its scheduled trial date of July 29, 2026, when the state will call its first witness.
Despite Dame’s continued disagreement with aspects of the ruling, the court’s decision signals that the substantive trial will proceed largely as planned, even as procedural disputes over the charge sheet’s precision continue to surface at various stages of the case.
The Buffer Stock case remains one of several high-profile prosecutions currently before Ghana’s courts involving allegations of financial impropriety connected to public office, adding to a broader pattern of scrutiny facing former officials under the current administration’s anti-corruption efforts.
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