Subscribe: Gist E-Paper
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered fresh cases of massive payroll fraud involving government officials who allegedly smuggled family members into the public service payroll and collected multiple salaries.
ICPC Chairman, Dr. Musa Aliyu, disclosed this on Thursday while delivering the keynote address at the 2026 Economic Confidential Lecture and National Spokespersons Award in Abuja.
Aliyu revealed that one government official allegedly enrolled 14 members of his family into the government payroll, enabling them to receive salaries despite not being legitimate employees.
He also disclosed another case involving an individual who allegedly placed his wife, son, daughter and other relatives on the payroll and collected 13 different salaries.
According to the ICPC chairman, the discoveries were made during extensive investigations into the activities of ghost workers across government institutions.
He said the commission identified about 900 suspected ghost workers and published their names, challenging them to prove they were genuine public servants.
Aliyu explained that the anti-graft agency spent nearly one year investigating the payroll fraud, tracing how fictitious names were inserted into official salary systems.
He noted that while the ghost workers' names and email addresses appeared on payroll records, the bank accounts receiving the salaries belonged to entirely different individuals.
According to him, the fraudulent practice goes beyond illegal salary payments, as ghost workers also create avenues for fake pensions, housing benefits, health insurance and other government entitlements.
He warned that such schemes drain public resources and impose heavy financial burdens on the nation.
Aliyu further disclosed that the commission recovered more than N24 billion in ghost pension funds in 2024 as part of its anti-corruption efforts.
He said the ICPC was strengthening collaboration with other government agencies and deploying preventive strategies to curb corruption before public funds were diverted.
The ICPC boss stressed that the commission was increasingly focusing on blocking corruption at its source and ensuring that government projects and resources benefited Nigerians rather than concentrating solely on criminal prosecutions.
He also advocated greater use of technology, data analytics and effective public communication in the fight against corruption, saying transparency and access to credible information were vital to building public confidence.
Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer of Image Merchants Promotions Limited (IMPR), Yusha'u Shuaib, said the annual lecture was organised to promote transparency, accountability and professionalism in governance and public communication.
