Canadian police arrest Ghanaian pastor in alleged social support fraud scheme

Tsatsu Tsikata recounts his prosecution and jailing under former President Kufuor's government

Legal luminary Tsatsu Tsikata recently discussed his prosecution and imprisonment under the government of former President John Agyekum Kufuor, where he was accused of causing financial loss to the state. Speaking at an Honorific Lecture and Award ceremony on April 15, 2026, Tsikata stated that the Kufuor government, including then Attorney General Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, actively sought his conviction. He noted that a Supreme Court decision, by a 5-4 majority, initially declared the Fast Track High Court, established for his prosecution, unconstitutional. Tsikata accused former President Kufuor of appointing two new justices to the Supreme Court to overturn this decision, which subsequently occurred with a 6-5 majority. Following this, Tsikata recounted being arrested at church. New charges were later brought against him in a normal High Court, which were dismissed. However, he was again arraigned before a Fast Track High Court and sentenced to five years in prison in the absence of his lawyer. Tsikata's legal issues originated from his time as Chief Executive of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation GNPC, where he was convicted in 2008 for approving a loan guarantee that led to financial loss. He served part of his sentence before receiving a presidential pardon in 2009 from former President John Evans Atta Mills. In 2010, the Supreme Court of Ghana overturned his conviction, citing flaws in the trial process and a miscarriage of justice.