Former National Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme (NEIP) Chief Executive Officer Kofi Ofosu Nkansah appeared before an Accra court on Thursday after being charged by the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) with publication of false news.
His lawyer, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, confirmed on Asempa FM on Wednesday that the charge relates to allegations that someone paid money to secure a government-sponsored scholarship to study abroad.
The case follows a presidential directive issued on February 3 instructing the NIB to investigate claims made by Nkansah during a discussion on Sompa 106.5 FM radio station in which he alleged that individuals, including New Patriotic Party (NPP) members, paid up to 100,000 Ghana cedis for overseas scholarships.
NIB officers searched Nkansah’s residence on Tuesday, February 10, as part of the investigation, according to his legal team, who claimed the officers did not produce a search warrant when questioned.
Nkansah first appeared at NIB headquarters on February 5 accompanied by his lawyer and was allowed to leave without being charged after providing information to investigators.
He was invited again on February 9 while visiting his critically ill father in Kumasi, and informed the NIB that he could not report immediately due to his father’s condition, requesting to appear on February 11 instead.
When Nkansah reported on Tuesday, heavily armed NIB officers escorted him to his residence to conduct the search before returning him to the NIB office at Nima in Accra, according to his legal team.
The Minority Caucus in Parliament issued a statement on Wednesday demanding his immediate release and condemning what it described as excessive force and abuse of power by the NIB.
Minority Chief Whip Frank Annoh-Dompreh stated that the actions undermined the rule of law and democratic governance, calling for further investigations to be conducted in a civil and dignified manner.
The Office of the President described the scholarship sale allegations as serious and of grave public concern when it directed the NIB to verify the claims, identify any individuals involved and submit findings directly to the President.
Nkansah stated in his radio interview that he did not know whether scholarships were being sold through the Ghana Scholarship Secretariat, Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) or any other state entity responsible for awarding them.
Alex Kwaku Asafo-Agyei, Director-General of the Ghana Scholarship Authority, called for a thorough investigation and the release of findings in the interest of transparency, accountability and sound public administration.
