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General News of Tuesday, 9 September 2025
Source: www.ghanaweb.com
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Former NSS Deputy Director-General Gifty Oware-Mensah (L) with her husband, Peter Mensah (R)
The current Registrar of the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat, Alex Kwaku Asafo-Agyei, has highlighted what he describes as irregularities in the awarding of scholarships under the former New Patriotic Party (NPP) government.
Speaking in a recent interview shared by Kumasi-based Nhyira FM on X, on September 8, 2025, Asafo-Agyei, noted that an audit of scholarships awarded under the leadership of the former registrar, Dr Kingsley Agyemang, revealed a troubling pattern where the state awarded scholarships covering fully paid visa fees, tickets, and yearly stipends for dependents and spouses of scholarship beneficiaries.
Details from a report shared by the current registrar showed that Peter Mensah, the husband of the former Deputy Director General of the National Service Authority, Gifty Oware-Mensah, was a beneficiary of such practices.
Gifty Oware-Mensah accused of GH¢30m loan fraud using fake identities – AG details
“We confirm that Peter Mensah has been awarded a financial scholarship by the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat to study LLM Law at Brunel University, London, United Kingdom, which commenced in January 2022. The scholarship covers Mensah and his dependent listed above, and it includes all student tuition fees of £17,875 and living expenses of £16,008 per annum. It also covers his dependent and spouse, Gifty Afia Oware-Mensah’s living expenses of £8,160,” portions of a sponsorship letter addressed to the UK Visa and Immigration Home Office, signed by the former registrar, and quoted by the host of the show read.
Describing the situation as a worrying and unnecessary financial burden on the state, Alex Asafo-Agyei questioned the rationale behind the benefits.
“The Peter Mensah mentioned is the husband of the very Gifty Oware we all know as the former Deputy Director General of the National Service Authority. By the mere fact that Peter Mensah was awarded a government scholarship at Brunel, the Scholarship Secretariat used government money, which is £8,160, to also sponsor his wife because Peter Mensah is traveling to study, and his wife, Gifty Oware, has to travel with him to keep him warm. How?” he questioned.
“Even her ticket to travel with her husband was paid for by the Scholarship Secretariat. What crime has the Scholarship Secretariat committed? While we have actual students whose tuitions and stipends are yet to be paid amidst their threats of demonstration, we have sponsored somebody and their entire family as if we are conducting an American lottery program,” he stated.
Two couples who are facing prosecution together under Mahama’s government
He described the case of Gifty Oware and her husband as the tip of the iceberg, noting that the amounts expended on some beneficiaries far exceeded expectations and covered a larger number of dependents.
“We confirm that Portia Adu Donyina has been awarded a financial scholarship by the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat to study Public Health and Community Studies at Coventry University, UK. The scholarship commenced in February 2021 and ends in February 2022. The scholarship covers Portia Adu Donyina and her dependents listed above, including all tuition fees of £15,100 and living expenses of £12,180. It also covers her dependents: Joseph Dwamena (spouse), living expenses of £7,605 per annum, and £6,120 per annum each for Nana Yaa Nhyira Dwamena (daughter) and Awurabena Kwakyewaa Dwamena (daughter),” another sponsorship letter read by the registrar stated.
Meanwhile, Gifty Oware-Mensah, former Deputy Executive Director of the National Service Authority (NSA), is among 12 former officials facing prosecution for their alleged roles in a GH₵548 million payroll fraud scandal.
The Attorney General, Dr Dominic Ayine, announced on June 13, 2025, that Oware-Mensah orchestrated a scheme involving 9,934 ghost names to siphon funds, including a GH₵30.6 million loan from the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) secured fraudulently using national service allowances.
She allegedly diverted GH₵22.9 million to AMAECOM, a company she directs, and used Blocks of Life Consult, registered without the knowledge of named directors, to channel funds.
Gifty Oware-Mensah was detained by the National Investigations Bureau (NIB) on March 7, 2025, and released on bail the following day.
She faces charges including stealing, money laundering, and causing financial loss to the state, with investigations ongoing under the Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL) initiative.
GA/VPO
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