The Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered 908 suspected ghost workers across several federal Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), leading to the recovery of about ₦942 million allegedly paid as fraudulent salaries.
ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu disclosed that the investigation commenced in 2024 after the commission detected irregularities in pension payments.
According to him, the probe revealed that some senior government officials allegedly inserted the names of relatives and associates into the federal payroll and collected salaries meant for non-existent employees.
Aliyu said one of the suspects allegedly placed his wife, son and mother-in-law on the payroll, while also receiving salaries for 12 additional ghost workers.
The investigation, which covered at least 50 federal MDAs, found that the Nigeria Police Force had the highest number of suspected ghost workers, with 570 cases.
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Other affected institutions include the National Water Resources Authority (80), 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) and the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (12).
The commission also disclosed that suspected ghost workers were identified in the office of the accountant-general of the federation and the Ministry of Interior, although the number of cases in those institutions was not released because investigations are still ongoing.
The ICPC said the recovered ₦942 million represents salary payments fraudulently made to fictitious employees, adding that investigations and efforts to prosecute those involved are continuing.
