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In what may appear as staggering news, information reaching Peacefmonline.com indicates that the frozen accounts of the former Chief Executive of the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), Sylvester Mensah is almost in red.

An Accra Financial and Economic court ordered Thursday that all bank accounts of the former legislator be frozen until investigations into alleged financial malfeasance levelled against him are over. 

The freeze order follows an ex-parte application made by the Financial Intelligence Centre, which serves as a national centre for the receipt and analysis of: (a) suspicious transaction reports; and (b) other information relevant to money laundering, associated predicate offences and financing of terrorism.

Even as legal brains argue over whether it is proper to use an ex-parte application to freeze the bank accounts of Mr. Mensah without giving him an opportunity to be heard, Peacefmonline gathers that all the accounts seem to be in debit.

The four accounts are at Access Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Energy Bank and Ecobank.

The accounts were frozen at a period the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) is investigating Mr. Mensah over what is being speculated to be financial malpractices that happened at the NHIA when he was the Chief Executive.

Mr. Mensah’s account at UBA as at when it was frozen on Thursday, contained a little below GH¢7,000, saying that is the account through which he runs his salary.

The Ecobank account contained the exact amount given to him as his end of service benefit after he had served his first term as NHIA Chief Executive, while the Access Bank and Energy Bank accounts were in debt to the tune of GH¢17,000 and $170,000 respectively.

According to reports, the former NHIA boss has taken a loan from Access Bank to build his house and was left with an amount of GH¢17,000 to complete payment. He also recently took a mortgage of  $170,000 to purchase a real estate facility which was being sold at a reduced price.

Mr. Mensah was arrested and detained at the BNI on New Year’s Day (January 1) when he reported himself to the security outfit in response to an invitation from the (BNI) Director. He was subsequently released on bail after some eleven hours in custody.

He has since been reporting himself to the BNI every single day but has not been charged with any offence yet.

On Thursday, the former NHIA CEO addressed the media and party activists drawn from the La Dadekotopon Constituency and expressed confidence that he will come out of the probe unscathed.

The Presidential Staffer indicated that no evidence of fraud has been established against him, as far as a probe by the Bureau of National Investigations into his tenure at the NHIA is concerned.