Former Board Chairman of the National Lottery Authority (NLA), Gary Nimako Marfo, has filed a defamation suit against four journalists and the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) over a report alleging that the Authority handed over a GH₵3 billion lottery business to KGL Technology Limited for just GH₵170 million annually.
The suit, filed at the High Court in Accra on September 30, 2025, names Seth J. Bokpe, Sulemana Braimah, William Nlanjerbor Jalulah, Philip Teye Agbove, and the MFWA as defendants.
Mr. Nimako is demanding GH₵10 million in damages, a full retraction, and a public apology with the same prominence as the original publication.
He argues that the article, published by The Fourth Estate, a project under the MFWA, was defamatory, misleading, and intended to tarnish his image and that of the former NLA board.
In his writ, the former NLA board chair is asking the court to declare the publication defamatory, rule that it was published without justification, confirm that it was calculated to incite public resentment against him, order the defendants to apologise and retract the story, and award GH₵10 million in compensation along with legal costs.
Mr. Nimako has denied claims in the alleged offending report, insisting that the report lacked a factual basis and was designed to mislead the public.
Meanwhile, former NLA Director-General, Samuel Awuku, has also criticised the report, particularly claims of misuse of funds under the NLA’s Good Causes Foundation.
He argued that while the Authority did sponsor events such as the EMY Africa Awards and the Ghana CEO Summit, these made up only about five percent of the Foundation’s budget.
According to him, the spending formed part of a broader strategy to build partnerships and promote the NLA’s Caritas Lottery Platform.
He maintained that the funds were not misused but invested to support the agency’s social impact work and wider objectives.
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