The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has initiated multiple investigations into suspected corruption and corruption-related offenses involving the National Cathedral project, the Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), and the education sector.
The development was announced in the OSP’s 2025 Half-Year Report, released on Tuesday, August 19, on the official X page of the OSP.
According to the report, the OSP is examining issues surrounding the procurement of contractors and materials for the National Cathedral, payments made by former Finance Minister Kenneth Nana Yaw Ofori-Atta, and disbursements by the Cathedral Secretariat.
The Office is also probing contractual arrangements between TOR and Tema Energy and Processing Limited, as well as the operation and management of TOR between 2020 and 2024.
In the education sector, the OSP confirmed it is investigating the large-scale sale of appointment letters to prospective teachers and the laundering of proceeds from the unlawful activity. The report further revealed ongoing investigations into the National Commission on Culture over alleged corruption and extortion in the payment of staff salaries and arrears between 2020 and 2024.
📌📌 Section 3(3) of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959) mandates the Office to publish, on a half-yearly basis, its activities.
— Office of the Special Prosecutor-Ghana (@ospghana) August 19, 2025
Read the full report covering January to July of this year. 👇https://t.co/Ihwf6tACE7 pic.twitter.com/eZpJjH5zms
Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng, in the preface to the report, stressed that the fight against corruption goes beyond arrests and imprisonment.
“The legislative set-up of the OSP places strong emphasis on prevention, asset recovery, and the disgorgement of tainted property,” he said.
He explained that the Office is pursuing lasting anti-corruption outcomes by combining enforcement with preventive measures and asset recovery, particularly through the OSP’s plea bargaining regime, which has already resulted in convictions and recovery of assets.
Mr. Agyebeng also called for reforms to Ghana’s anti-corruption framework, disclosing that the OSP has proposed the creation of a new constitutional chapter dedicated to fighting corruption.
This, he noted, would enshrine measures such as lifestyle audits, non-conviction-based asset recovery, enhanced asset declarations and verification, and a reverse onus presumption of corruption as the foundation for both criminal prosecutions and civil asset recovery.
The Special Prosecutor further revealed that the Office is spearheading efforts to pass a Comprehensive Corrupt Practices Act and a Conduct of Public Officers Act.
The OSP is also one of three implementing partners of the new National Ethics and Anti-Corruption Strategy and Implementation Plan, aimed at building structures to strengthen accountability.
“The task ahead remains formidable, but so is our resolve to deliver,” Mr. Agyebeng affirmed.
