The Economic and Organised Crime Office has granted former Inter-Ministerial Coordinating Committee on Decentralisation Executive Secretary Dennis Edward Aboagye bail of GH¢50 million with three sureties while investigations continue into alleged financial and procurement irregularities at the secretariat.
Two of the sureties must be justified, according to accounts from Mr Aboagye’s legal team and New Patriotic Party officials. His lead counsel, Samuel Atta Akyea, said the conditions had not been met by Monday night because of the difficulty of quickly identifying qualifying properties and completing the required documentation.
Mr Aboagye, popularly known as Miracles, served as Executive Secretary of IMCCoD and is now associated with the office of NPP flagbearer Dr Mahamudu Bawumia. EOCO says its investigation concerns suspected irregularities involving about GH¢55 million. The allegations have not been tested in court, and Mr Aboagye remains presumed innocent.
EOCO said the inquiry followed a petition from the current IMCCoD Executive Secretary seeking further investigation of findings from a forensic audit. The audit covered the secretariat’s affairs between August 1, 2022 and February 2, 2025.
The agency listed suspected offences being examined, including conspiracy to steal, stealing, use of public office for profit, causing financial loss to the state, dissipation of public funds, defrauding by false pretences and money laundering. The list describes the scope of the investigation and does not amount to a finding of guilt against any person.
Investigators also arrested former IMCCoD accountant Gerald Appiah. EOCO said Mr Appiah had voluntarily begun refunding money connected to matters under investigation, but stressed that a recovery neither ends the inquiry nor clears any suspect of possible criminal responsibility.
EOCO’s account states that Mr Aboagye was aware of the investigation and had previously reported to the office. A stop order was later placed on him, but the agency said he had already left Ghana before the restriction was activated.
Ghana Immigration Service officers executed the order when he returned through Kotoka International Airport on Saturday, July 11. He was handed to EOCO investigators on Sunday morning and subsequently accompanied officers during a search operation.
The agency said it would observe the Constitution and applicable laws in handling bail and the rights of the people under investigation. It also pledged to conduct the inquiry professionally and impartially while pursuing any public funds found to be recoverable.
The NPP’s communications director, Richard Ahiagbah, publicly disclosed the GH¢50 million bail figure and expressed hope that the terms would be met or varied. Mr Atta Akyea later argued that the value and justification requirements made immediate compliance unrealistic.
The competing public statements place two issues before investigators and the defence: EOCO’s responsibility to secure attendance and protect an active financial investigation, and the practical ability of a suspect to satisfy administrative bail conditions. Any application to vary the conditions would have to follow the applicable legal process.
The substantive allegations remain unresolved. EOCO had not announced completion of its inquiry or a final charging decision at the research cutoff.
Mr Aboagye remained subject to the investigation and bail conditions, while the former accountant’s reported refunds did not end the inquiry or establish the criminal liability of any suspect.
