SSNIT $66m OBS scandal: Prosecution asks for more time

The prosecution handling the case involving a former Director-General of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), Mr Ernest Thompson, and four others charged for causing financial loss of more than $15.3 million to the state, has asked for more time to refile its witness statements against the accused persons.

This, according to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Ms Yvonne Attakorah Obuobisah, had become necessary following the amendment of the charges relating to willfully causing financial loss to the state.

When the case was called at the High court Wednesday, the DPP said “in view of the fact that we have filed a new charge sheet, we intend to refile our witness statement.

“We are working on it, and we are praying for two to three weeks to enable us file and serve same on the accused persons,” she said.

The court, presided over by Justice Henry Kwofie, a Justice of the Court of Appeal sitting as a High Court judge, therefore, adjourned the case to June 17 this year.

Read also: SSNIT $66m OBS scandal: Ernest Thompson, 4 others plead not guilty

Accused persons

The five persons are facing criminal prosecution over the $66 million SSNIT Operational Business Suite (OBS) project, which was meant to revamp the operations of SSNIT through information and communications technology (ICT).

This is the second time the accused persons have been arraigned.

The four others accused are John Hagan Mensah, a former IT Manager at SSNIT; Juliet Hassana Kramer, the CEO of Perfect Business Systems (PBS); Caleb Kwaku Afaglo, a former Head of Management Information Systems (MIS) at SSNIT; and Peter Hayibor, the lawyer for SSNIT.

They have pleaded not guilty to 29 charges, including various counts of conspiracy to willfully cause financial loss to the state and willfully causing financial loss to the state.

Thompson and Kramer separately pleaded not guilty to three counts of contravening the Public Procurement Act, 2003 (Act 663), while Kramer and Afaglo also pleaded not guilty to defrauding by false pretence.

Afaglo is alleged to have secured his employment at SSNIT with fake certificates, and was accordingly charged with various counts of possession of forged documents and uttering forged documents.

They have since been admitted to self-recognisance bail.

Read also: SSNIT Scandal: A-G to amend charge sheet against Ernest Thompson and 4 others

Prosecution’s facts

It is the case of the prosecution that in June 2010, SSNIT initiated the $34 million OBS project to use ICT to revamp its operations to enable it to provide a state-of-the-art pension administration system in the country.

It said the objective of the project was to automate all of core processes in the administration of pension, and “integrate all internal systems, as well as external stakeholders of SSNIT”.

The contract sum, the Artoney-General argued, also ballooned from $34 million to over $66 million although the OBS system failed to perform efficiently as the project contract had envisaged.

“The so-called variations or change orders were carried out at the instance of A1 (Thompson), A2 (Mensah), A3 (Kramer) and A4 (Afaglo), and authorised by A1 (Thompson) even though some of the payments were above his threshold as Director-General and contrary to the Public Procurement Act,” the prosecution said.

The prosecution further said the OBS system was not working but Thompson continued to pay for its related expenses.

“Investigations established that although the OBS system was not performing as efficiently as contracted for, A1 (Thompson) gave authorisation for various payments which culminated in the losses.

“Investigations also indicated that PBS, purportedly represented by A3 (Kramer), is a non-existent company,” the prosecution said.

According to the prosecution, investigations also revealed that Afaglo “relied on certificates purporting to be educational certificates he did not possess” to gain employment at SSNIT as its General Manager for MIS on October 1, 2015.