Crime
OSP secures conviction of four ex-Northern Development Authority staff over corrupt contracts
Tamale High Court has convicted four people, including former senior officials of the Northern Development Authority (NDA), on seven counts of corruption and corruption-related offences involving contracts under the government’s Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP). The convicts are Sumaila Abdul-Rahman, former Chief Executive of the NDA; Stephen Yir-Eru Engmen, former Deputy Chief Executive in […]
manuel ·Oct 23, 2026 ·2 min read
Tamale High Court has convicted four people, including former senior officials of the Northern Development Authority (NDA), on seven counts of corruption and corruption-related offences involving contracts under the government’s Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP).
The convicts are Sumaila Abdul-Rahman, former Chief Executive of the NDA; Stephen Yir-Eru Engmen, former Deputy Chief Executive in charge of Operations; Patrick Seidu, former Deputy Chief Executive in charge of Finance and Administration; and Andrew Kuundaari, Chief Executive of private company A&QS Consortium Limited.
The court delivered the verdict on Friday, October 23, 2026, after a prosecution led by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).
The charges included conspiracy to influence the procurement process to gain an unfair advantage in the award of contracts, influencing the procurement process for an unfair advantage, corruption by a public officer and corruption of a public officer.
The contracts were awarded under IPEP, a government programme aimed at addressing infrastructure needs in deprived communities.
The OSP said it initiated the prosecution following investigations into a complaint filed by legal practitioner Martin Kpebu.
Although the four were convicted on seven of the 11 counts, the court did not impose custodial sentences. It instead fined each convict 1,000 penalty units for each count.
According to the OSP, the court cited the advanced age of the convicts and the swift action taken by the office to prevent unlawful payments under the contracts. The court also noted that no loss had been caused to the state.
The OSP said it remained committed to protecting public funds and holding public officials and their private-sector collaborators accountable for corruption.
