The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered cases of alleged manipulation of government payroll systems, including an official who enrolled 14 members of his family as government workers.
The ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, SAN, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja while delivering the keynote address at the 2026 Economic Confidential Lecture and National Spokespersons Award organised by Image Merchants Promotions Limited.
Aliyu said investigations by the commission into ghost workers had revealed how individuals manipulated payroll systems to receive multiple salaries from government.
According to him, one official enrolled 14 members of his family on the government payroll, while another allegedly enrolled his wife, daughter, son and other relatives and received 13 salaries.
The ICPC chairman said the commission had identified about 900 suspected ghost workers and published their names, challenging those listed to establish that they were genuine employees.
He said the commission subsequently spent about a year investigating the cases and uncovered methods used to introduce fictitious names into official payroll systems.
Aliyu explained that in some instances, the names of suspected ghost workers appeared alongside email addresses on official payroll records, while the bank account details attached to the salaries belonged to different individuals.
He warned that the financial implications of ghost workers extended beyond the payment of salaries, as fraudulent employees could also become beneficiaries of government pension schemes, housing funds, mortgages, health insurance and other benefits.
The ICPC chairman further disclosed that the commission recovered more than N24 billion in ghost workers’ pension funds in 2024.
He said the commission was increasingly focusing on preventive measures, cross-agency collaboration and the use of data and technology to detect corruption and protect public resources.
Aliyu said preventing the diversion of government funds and ensuring that public projects and programmes delivered value to citizens were preferable to relying solely on criminal prosecution.
The ICPC chairman stressed that the commission’s interventions were aimed at safeguarding public resources and strengthening the economy by ensuring that government expenditure ultimately benefited Nigerians.
Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer of Image Merchants Promotions Limited, Yusha’u Shuaib, said the Economic Confidential lecture was organised to promote transparency, accountability and professional communication in governance.
The ICPC’s latest disclosure highlights the scale of payroll fraud and the need for stronger verification and data-sharing mechanisms across government institutions to prevent the creation and payment of fictitious employees.
