The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered cases of government payroll manipulation that created ghost workers, including one official who allegedly enrolled 14 family members and collected multiple salaries. Musa Aliyu, chairman of the ICPC, disclosed this while delivering the keynote address at the 2026 Economic Confidential Lecture and National Spokespersons Award, organised by Image Merchants Promotions Limited (IMPR) in Abuja on Thursday, July 13.
How Ghost Workers Were Inserted into Payroll Systems
Aliyu said investigations by the commission revealed different methods used to insert fictitious employees into government payrolls and divert public funds. “We discovered that one person enrolled 14 members of his family. He lived in a religious hotel, a hotel at the public office, receiving salaries,” he said. “Another person enrolled his wife, his daughter, his son, and others and was receiving 13 salaries.”
The ICPC chairman said the commission had identified about 900 suspected ghost workers and published their names to allow the affected individuals to establish that they were genuine employees. He said the investigation lasted about a year and uncovered cases where fictitious employees appeared to have legitimate names and email addresses on official payroll systems, while the bank accounts attached to their records belonged to other people.
ICPC's Year-Long Investigation and Findings
“We spent one year, one single year, on ghost workers,” Aliyu said. “When they insert their names, you will see their name in the payroll. You will see their email. But when you check the account number, you will see the name of the person. So, that is how these things have been done.”
Aliyu warned that payroll fraud could have consequences beyond the payment of salaries, because fictitious employees could also become beneficiaries of pensions, mortgages, housing funds and health insurance. He disclosed that the ICPC recovered more than N24 billion in suspected ghost workers’ pension funds in 2024.
Recovery of N24 Billion and Preventive Measures
“Because, you know, once there is a ghost worker, there is ghost pension, there is ghost mortgage, there is ghost housing fund, there is ghost health insurance,” he said. “In 2024, we recovered over N24 billion ghost workers pension.” The ICPC chairman said the commission was strengthening cooperation with other government agencies while adopting preventive measures to curb corruption and recover public resources.
He said the commission was increasingly focusing on preventing corruption and ensuring that government projects were properly executed, rather than relying solely on criminal prosecution. “It is better for us to do that than to engage in filing criminal charges. How many charges can we file?” Aliyu said.
Call for Data and Technology in Anti-Corruption Efforts
He added that the ultimate objective was to ensure that Nigerians received value for government expenditure. Aliyu also called for greater use of data and technology in combating corruption, saying reliable information and effective communication were essential to improving public confidence in anti-corruption efforts.
