ICPC Uncovers 908 Ghost Workers, Recovers N942m in Federal MDAs

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, says it has uncovered 908 ghost workers across several federal ministries, departments and agencies, and recovered about N942 million allegedly paid through fraudulent payroll schemes.

ICPC Chairman, Dr. Musa Aliyu, disclosed this according to a report by BBC Pidgin. He said the discovery followed an investigation launched in 2024 after the commission identified irregularities in pension payments.

Aliyu explained that the probe exposed widespread payroll manipulation, with fictitious names allegedly inserted into government salary systems to siphon public funds.

He alleged that some senior public officials enrolled relatives and associates on government payrolls and diverted the salaries for personal use.

The ICPC chairman cited one case in which a suspect allegedly placed the names of his wife, son and mother-in-law on the payroll, while also collecting the salaries of 12 other workers.

*MDAs Most Affected*

The investigation covered at least 50 federal MDAs. The breakdown includes:

– *Nigeria Police Force*: 570 suspected ghost workers

– *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

– *Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation*: 12

Aliyu further disclosed that the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Ministry of Interior were also implicated. He said the commission withheld the specific number of affected names in those institutions as inquiries are ongoing.