By Grace Zigah
The Accra High Court has reviewed the bail conditions of former Executive Director of the National Service Authority (NSA), Osei Assibey Antwi, reducing it from an initial GH¢800 million to GH¢623 million.
The review is coming on the heels of the release of his deputy, Gifty Oware-Mensah, after spending weeks at the National Intelligence Bureau, NIB cells.
The court’s decision comes weeks after Assibey Antwi legal team argued that the earlier amount was excessively punitive and practically impossible to satisfy. The
Assibey, who is currently facing multiple charges including stealing, money laundering, and causing financial loss to the state to the tune of GH¢1.4 billion, remains in custody as he works to meet the revised bail requirements.
His defense team, led by private legal practitioners, contended that the GH¢800 million bail was disproportionate to his personal capacity and amounted to a denial of his constitutional right to bail.
They argued that fulfilling the earlier condition would require pledging several high-value properties across Accra or thousands of houses in Kumasi — an unrealistic demand.
They further noted that the primary objective of bail, which is to ensure the accused person’s availability for trial, has already been satisfied, as Assibey has surrendered his passports and has been placed on a no-flight list, preventing any possible escape from jurisdiction.
However, prosecutors from the Attorney General’s Department, led by Dufie Prempeh, opposed the application for variation, maintaining that the original bail amount was appropriate given the magnitude of financial loss allegedly caused to the state.
The court, after reviewing submissions from both sides, accepted that the revised figure of GH¢623 million was more “practicable” while upholding all other existing bail conditions, including property guarantees and sureties.
The former Deputy Executive Director, Gifty Oware Mensah, has been released from custody after satisfying her GH¢10 million bail condition.
Her release was confirmed by the Deputy General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Haruna Mohammed, during an appearance on Channel One TV’s Breakfast Daily programme.
According to Mohammed, “Madam Gifty Oware met her bail condition yesterday and has since been released. However, her boss, Mr. Assibey, is still in custody because his bail amount is too high — GH¢800 million, what kind of condition is that?”
Oware Mensah, who served under the same administration as Assibey, is accused of causing a financial loss of more than GH¢38 million to the state.
Prosecutors allege that during her tenure, she generated close to 10,000 ghost names of non-existent National Service personnel, siphoning their monthly allowances for personal gain.
She has, however, pleaded not guilty to all five charges leveled against her, which include willfully causing financial loss to the state, stealing, money laundering, and abuse of public office.
