Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Anthony Kwasi Sarpong
The Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Anthony Kwasi Sarpong, is expected to appear before the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) on Friday, June 27, 2025, to respond to questions regarding the Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited (SML) scandal.
According to a report by Manasseh Azure, although the scandal predates Sarpong’s tenure, his input is required due to his role as a senior partner at KPMG when then-President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo commissioned the firm to conduct an investigative audit on the SML contract with the GRA and the Ministry of Finance.
The OSP is currently investigating suspected corruption and related offenses involving revenue assurance contracts between the GRA and SML.
Earlier, the OSP arrested former Commissioner-General Reverend Dr Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah and two others; Isaac Crentsil, former Commissioner of Customs and now General Manager at SML, and Christian Tetteh Sottie, former Technical Advisor and now Managing Director and CEO of SML.
The three were detained on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, after failing to meet their bail conditions.
Additional individuals arrested in connection with the case include Evans Adusei, CEO of SML; Philip Mensah, former Deputy Commissioner of Legal at GRA and now a legal consultant to SML; and Joseph Kuruk and Faustina Adjorkor, both staff of the Public Procurement Authority (PPA). Also implicated is Kofi Nti, a former GRA Commissioner-General.
The SML scandal is among several high-profile cases being examined by the OSP, with former finance minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, declared a suspect and wanted fugitive.
The OSP is scrutinising agreements involving petroleum and mineral revenue oversight, which were brokered between SML and GRA under the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration.
Initially intended to monitor the downstream petroleum sector, the contract’s scope was expanded in 2023 to include upstream petroleum operations and the mining sector, drawing public criticism.
In 2024, following the KPMG audit, the government suspended the contract. By then, GH¢1.06 billion had already been paid to SML, and if it had continued, the deal was projected to cost the state GH¢5.17 billion over five years.
In reaction to the scandal, a coalition of five civil society organisations filed a lawsuit seeking to recover the GH¢1 billion already disbursed.
SA/MA
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