“Dr Nyarko Esumadu Appiah Under Fire as Court Blocks DVLA Plate Rollout Over Monopolisation and Procurement Violations

Dr Nyarko Esumadu Appiah, Chief Executive of Original Manufacturing and Embossment, also known as Daasebre, has come under intense scrutiny following a High Court injunction that has halted the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority’s (DVLA) planned rollout of a new vehicle number plate system.

The court action stems from a lawsuit filed by members of the Vehicle Embossment Association of Ghana (VEMAG), who allege that the DVLA unlawfully awarded both the manufacture and embossment of vehicle number plates to Dr Appiah’s company, sidelining dozens of long-standing licensed embossers.

According to the plaintiffs, the DVLA Chief Executive disclosed at a meeting on October 27, 2025, that the entire contract had been handed to Original Manufacturing and Embossment, a move they describe as unprecedented, discriminatory, and contrary to decades of established practice in the sector.

VEMAG further claims that the alleged sole-sourcing of the contract violated Ghana’s Public Procurement Act, as no competitive tender was advertised and no approval was obtained from the Public Procurement Authority. The association argues that the arrangement unfairly concentrates control of a national vehicle registration process in the hands of a single private entity.

The controversy has sparked wider concern within the industry, with embossers warning that the deal could collapse local businesses, threaten over 3,000 jobs nationwide, and undermine investments worth millions of cedis made in specialised embossment equipment based on DVLA specifications.

While Dr Appiah and the DVLA have yet to publicly respond to the allegations in court, the injunction now prevents the implementation of any new or digital number plate system and freezes all alternative arrangements pending the final determination of the case.