The High Court in Tamale has convicted former Northern Development Authority (NDA) Chief Executive Sumaila Abdul-Rahman and three others on seven counts of corruption and corruption-related offences arising from procurement contracts under the government’s Infrastructure for Poverty Eradication Programme (IPEP).
The court, on October 23, 2026, convicted Abdul-Rahman, former Deputy Chief Executive in charge of Operations Stephen Yir-Eru Engmen, former Deputy Chief Executive in charge of Finance and Administration Patrick Seidu, and Andrew Kuundaari, Chief Executive of A&QS Consortium Limited, a private company.
According to the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), which prosecuted the case, the four were convicted of offences involving conspiracy to influence the procurement process to obtain an unfair advantage in the award of a procurement contract, directly or indirectly influencing the procurement process to obtain such an advantage, corruption by a public officer, and corruption of a public officer.
The accused had faced eleven counts in total, meaning they were convicted on seven of the charges.
Court Imposes Fines Instead of Custodial Sentences
Although the court convicted the four, it declined to impose custodial sentences. The OSP said the court took into account the advanced age of the convicts and the prosecution’s swift intervention to prevent unlawful payments under the contracts.
According to the OSP, the court considered that no loss had been caused to the Republic.The court instead imposed a fine of 1,000 penalty units for each count.
The prosecution was initiated and conducted by the OSP following investigations into a complaint filed by legal practitioner Martin Kpebu.
The case concerned procurement contracts awarded under the IPEP, a government programme intended to support infrastructure development and poverty eradication.
The trial had been pending before the Criminal Division of the High Court in Tamale. On April 26, 2024, the court dismissed a submission of no case to answer by the accused, holding that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against them on all eleven counts. Their subsequent appeal against that ruling was dismissed by the Court of Appeal.
The accused opened their defence in October 2024, which concluded on November 7, 2025. Judgment was subsequently scheduled for delivery in October 2026.
In a statement issued on October 23, 2026, the OSP reaffirmed its commitment to protecting the public purse and holding public officials and their collaborators in the private sector accountable.
The convictions mark a significant development in the prosecution of alleged corruption involving public procurement under a major government infrastructure programme.
