The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) says it has uncovered 908 ghost workers across several federal ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), recovering about ₦942 million allegedly lost to a fraudulent payroll scheme.
ICPC Chairman Musa Aliyu disclosed that the discovery followed an investigation launched in 2024 after the commission detected irregularities in pension payments.
According to Aliyu, the probe uncovered widespread payroll fraud involving the insertion of fictitious names into government salary systems to divert public funds.
He alleged that some senior public officials placed their relatives and associates on government payrolls and collected the salaries for personal gain.
In one of the cases highlighted, a suspect allegedly enrolled his wife, son and mother-in-law on the payroll while also collecting the salaries of 12 other workers.
The ICPC said the investigation covered at least 50 federal MDAs, with the Nigeria Police Force recording the highest number of suspected ghost workers at 570.
Other affected institutions include:
- National Water Resources Authority – 80 ghost workers
- Federal Ministry of Works – 56
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs – 24
- Ministry of Defence – 19
- Ministry of Power – 17
- Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment – 17
- Federal Ministry of Health – 15
- Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation – 12
Aliyu also revealed that the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Ministry of Interior are part of the ongoing investigation, although the number of suspected ghost workers in those institutions has not yet been disclosed.
The ICPC said investigations are continuing as it works to identify those responsible and recover additional public funds allegedly lost through the payroll fraud scheme.
Source: BBC Pidgin.
