The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has identified the Nigeria Police Force as the agency with the highest number of suspected ghost workers in a nationwide payroll verification exercise. The commission uncovered 908 suspected ghost workers across at least 50 federal institutions and recovered approximately N942 million in fraudulent salary payments.
ICPC Chairman Reveals Findings
ICPC Chairman Musa Adamu Aliyu (SAN) disclosed the findings on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, as reported by The Punch. He explained that ghost workers are non-existent individuals whose names are placed on payrolls so that officials can siphon the corresponding salaries. In some cases, workers added relatives or associates to the system while those individuals never reported to any government office.
One notable case involved a man who allegedly put his wife, son, and mother-in-law on the payroll while also drawing the salaries of 12 other workers, meaning he was collecting pay meant for 15 people in total.
Police Leads in Suspected Ghost Workers
According to Vanguard, the Nigeria Police Force recorded the single largest haul of suspected fake workers among all institutions checked. Aliyu stated, "For this operation, we identified 570 people whom we suspect are among the fake workers collecting salaries without working."
The National Water Resources Authority came second with 80 suspected ghost workers. Aliyu noted, "For this agency, we identified 80 names of people collecting salaries even though they are not workers of the agency."
Other Affected Ministries and Agencies
The Federal Ministry of Works followed with 56 suspected fake workers, while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had 24. The Ministry of Defence recorded 19. Aliyu said, "For the Ministry of Defence, we identified 19 people acting as fake workers."
Several other institutions were also found to have fraudulent entries on their payrolls. The Federal Ministry of Electricity and the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment each had 17 suspected ghost workers, while the Federal Ministry of Health recorded 15 and the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation had 12. The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Federal Ministry of Interior were included among the affected institutions, though the ICPC did not release specific figures for either office.
Federal Government Previously Uncovered 45,000 Ghost Workers
Recall that the federal government identified about 45,000 ghost workers after integrating payroll records with the BVN database, significantly reducing fraud. Previous biometric verification efforts failed due to resistance from some agencies, which allowed irregular payments to continue unchecked. The new accountability measures required Permanent Secretaries to approve payrolls, creating responsibility and limiting future manipulation.
Government Takes Action Against Ghost Workers
Meanwhile, Legit.ng also reported that the Tinubu-led government has launched a personnel audit to identify ghost workers, especially those who have relocated abroad but continue to earn salaries. The audit, initiated by the Accountant General’s office, targets MDAs under its pool, with a May 2 deadline for submission of updated staff records. This action follows President Tinubu’s 2023 directive to recover funds from absconded civil servants and discipline complicit supervisors.
