When President John Dramani Mahama and the NDC swept to power on the back of the 2024 elections, few anti-corruption pledges captured public imagination quite like Operation Recover All Loot (ORAL). More than a year on, the initiative finds itself caught between legal realities and rising public frustration — prompting uncomfortable questions about whether the promise can still be kept.
A Strong Start:
ORAL hit the ground running. Even before Mahama was formally inaugurated, a transition committee chaired by Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa was already in place to receive complaints from the public. The response was overwhelming — over 2,400 submissions arrived via calls, emails, and petitions, signalling just how deeply Ghanaians felt about alleged looting under the previous NPP administration.
In February 2025, the committee presented its findings to the president: 36 high-value cases with a combined worth of approximately $20.49 billion, alongside land-related cases valued at a further $702.8 million. Mahama promptly handed the dossier to Attorney General Dr. Dominic Akuritinga Ayine for immediate investigation. Assets worth GH¢1.5 billion were frozen, and by mid-2025, reports indicated that 33 cases were being built toward prosecution.
Where Things Stand Now
By early 2026, however, the momentum has visibly stalled. Frozen assets cannot be seized without court convictions, and prosecutions have been slowed by the grinding demands of judicial process — evidence gathering, legal challenges, and institutional capacity constraints. Despite the early hype, there are no major recoveries, no high-profile convictions, and no significant funds returned to the national treasury to point to.
Perhaps most telling was the 2026 State of the Nation Address. Unlike in 2025, when Mahama referenced ORAL prominently, the initiative received no direct mention this time around — though the president did acknowledge public frustration with the slow pace of accountability efforts.
A Divided Verdict
The debate over ORAL’s future has sharpened into two distinct camps. Government spokesperson Felix Kwakye Ofosu has defended the initiative, arguing that the state cannot — and should not — manipulate the judiciary to manufacture quick results, and insisting that 2026 would begin to yield more visible action.
Critics, however, are less patient. Legal commentators and a number of former officials have labelled ORAL politicised, dismissing it variously as a “tool for convenience” and a “sick joke” that has devolved into performative politics rather than genuine justice. For them, the initiative lacks the structural teeth — such as fast-track courts or stronger legislative backing — needed to deliver meaningful outcomes.
The Attorney General has pushed back against the most damning assessments, insisting that investigations are progressing and that institutions will soon face stronger demands. But without tangible wins to show, those assurances have done little to restore public confidence.
Ghana’s Two-Tier Justice: Poor Punished, Powerful Protected
At its core, ORAL reflects a cycle that Ghanaians have witnessed before — an anti-corruption initiative born of genuine public appetite, elevated by campaign rhetoric, and then gradually bogged down in the slow machinery of bureaucracy, due process, and political complexity. The gap between what was promised and what has been delivered so far is wide enough to fuel the cynicism that now surrounds it.
Whether ORAL can still course-correct and deliver the accountability it promised remains to be seen. But for now, it stands as a cautionary reminder of just how difficult it is to translate political will into institutional action — and how quickly public trust can erode when expectations outpace results.