[Nigeria] ICPC investigation reveals government officials' payroll fraud

In Nigeria, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has announced that its investigation uncovered a massive ghost-worker scheme in which a government official allegedly enrolled 14 members of his family on the public payroll, The Guardian reports.

ICPC’s Chairman, Dr Musa Aliyu, revealed the findings on August 13 in Abuja during his keynote address at the 2026 Economic Confidential Lecture and National Spokespersons Award.

According to Dr Aliyu, the discovery was made during a year-long investigation into suspected ghost workers and payroll manipulation across government institutions

One official allegedly inserted 14 members of his family into the government payroll and collected their salaries. Another individual was reportedly found to have enrolled his wife, daughter, son and other relatives, enabling him to receive 13 salaries.

Dr Aliyu said, “We discovered that one person enrolled 14 members of his family. He lived in a religious hotel, a hotel at the public office, receiving salaries.”

He added that another individual had “enrolled his wife, his daughter, his son, and others and was receiving 13 salaries.”

He added that investigators had uncovered sophisticated methods to manipulate payroll records, including instances where the names and email addresses of purported employees appeared in official databases while the bank accounts attached to the records belonged to different individuals.

“When they insert their names, you will see their name in the payroll. You will see their email. But when you check the account number, you will see the name of the person. So, that is how these things have been done,” the chairman said.

Dr Aliyu stated that the commission had identified around 900 suspected ghost workers and published their names so those affected had an opportunity to establish that they were genuine government employees.

He said the investigation underscored the scale of payroll fraud and its wider implications for public finances, adding that fraudulent employees could generate not only ghost salaries but also fictitious pension, mortgage, housing fund and health insurance benefits.

“Because, you know, once there is a ghost worker, there is ghost pension, there is ghost mortgage, there is ghost housing fund, there is ghost health insurance,” he said.

In addition, Dr Aliyu disclosed that the commission had recovered more than N24bn linked to ghost workers’ pension payments in 2024.

He reportedly said that the commission was increasingly prioritising preventive measures, data-driven investigations and interventions that block avenues for corruption, rather than relying solely on criminal prosecution after public funds had been lost.

“It is better for us to do that than to engage in filing criminal charges. How many charges can we file?” the chairman said and called for greater deployment of technology and data analytics in the fight against corruption.

He emphasised that reliable information and effective communication were critical to strengthening accountability and restoring public confidence in government institutions.

The latest disclosure has brought a new dimension to the ICPC’s ongoing efforts to dismantle payroll fraud and recover public funds diverted through ghost-worker arrangements.

Source: The Guardian

(Quotes via original reporting)

In Nigeria, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has announced that its investigation uncovered a massive ghost-worker scheme in which a government official allegedly enrolled 14 members of his family on the public payroll, The Guardian reports.

ICPC’s Chairman, Dr Musa Aliyu, revealed the findings on August 13 in Abuja during his keynote address at the 2026 Economic Confidential Lecture and National Spokespersons Award.

According to Dr Aliyu, the discovery was made during a year-long investigation into suspected ghost workers and payroll manipulation across government institutions

One official allegedly inserted 14 members of his family into the government payroll and collected their salaries. Another individual was reportedly found to have enrolled his wife, daughter, son and other relatives, enabling him to receive 13 salaries.

Dr Aliyu said, “We discovered that one person enrolled 14 members of his family. He lived in a religious hotel, a hotel at the public office, receiving salaries.”

He added that another individual had “enrolled his wife, his daughter, his son, and others and was receiving 13 salaries.”

He added that investigators had uncovered sophisticated methods to manipulate payroll records, including instances where the names and email addresses of purported employees appeared in official databases while the bank accounts attached to the records belonged to different individuals.

“When they insert their names, you will see their name in the payroll. You will see their email. But when you check the account number, you will see the name of the person. So, that is how these things have been done,” the chairman said.

Dr Aliyu stated that the commission had identified around 900 suspected ghost workers and published their names so those affected had an opportunity to establish that they were genuine government employees.

He said the investigation underscored the scale of payroll fraud and its wider implications for public finances, adding that fraudulent employees could generate not only ghost salaries but also fictitious pension, mortgage, housing fund and health insurance benefits.

“Because, you know, once there is a ghost worker, there is ghost pension, there is ghost mortgage, there is ghost housing fund, there is ghost health insurance,” he said.

In addition, Dr Aliyu disclosed that the commission had recovered more than N24bn linked to ghost workers’ pension payments in 2024.

He reportedly said that the commission was increasingly prioritising preventive measures, data-driven investigations and interventions that block avenues for corruption, rather than relying solely on criminal prosecution after public funds had been lost.

“It is better for us to do that than to engage in filing criminal charges. How many charges can we file?” the chairman said and called for greater deployment of technology and data analytics in the fight against corruption.

He emphasised that reliable information and effective communication were critical to strengthening accountability and restoring public confidence in government institutions.

The latest disclosure has brought a new dimension to the ICPC’s ongoing efforts to dismantle payroll fraud and recover public funds diverted through ghost-worker arrangements.

Source: The Guardian

(Quotes via original reporting)