ICPC Uncovers Ghost Worker Scheme As Official Enrols 14 Family Members

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered a major ghost-worker scheme in which a government official allegedly enrolled 14 members of his family on the public payroll.

ICPC Chairman, Dr Musa Adamu Aliyu, SAN, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja according to a report by The Guardian seen by TVC News Online while delivering the keynote address at the 2026 Economic Confidential Lecture and National Spokespersons Awards organised by Image Merchants Promotions Limited.

Aliyu said the discovery was made during a year-long investigation into suspected ghost workers and payroll manipulation across government institutions.

According to him, one official allegedly enrolled 14 relatives on the payroll and collected their salaries, while another person enrolled his wife, daughter, son and other family members, enabling him to receive 13 salaries.

“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,” Aliyu said.

He added that another individual “enrolled his wife, his daughter, his son, and others and was receiving 13 salaries.”

The ICPC chairman said investigators also uncovered sophisticated methods of manipulating payroll records, including cases where the names and email addresses of supposed employees appeared in official databases while the bank accounts linked to them belonged to other individuals.

“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,” he explained.

Aliyu disclosed that the commission had identified about 900 suspected ghost workers and published their names to allow those affected to prove that they were genuine government employees.

He warned that payroll fraud could have wider financial implications beyond salaries, as fictitious employees could also generate fraudulent pension, mortgage, housing fund and health insurance benefits.

“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.

The ICPC chairman further disclosed that the commission recovered more than ₦24 billion linked to ghost-worker pension payments in 2024.

Aliyu said the commission was increasingly focusing on preventive measures, data-driven investigations and interventions designed to block avenues for corruption before public funds were lost.

“It is better for us to do that than to engage in filing criminal charges. How many charges can we file?” he said.

He called for greater use of technology and data analytics in combating corruption, stressing that reliable information and effective communication were essential to strengthening accountability and restoring public confidence in government institutions.