Police top list as ICPC uncovers 908 fake workers across federal MDAs

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) says it has uncovered 908 fake workers across federal ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) in a major payroll fraud scheme.

The commission disclosed that about N942 million linked to fraudulent salary payments has been recovered.

ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, said the discovery followed an investigation launched in 2024 after irregularities were detected in pension payments.

He explained that fake workers are individuals whose names are fraudulently inserted into government payrolls despite not being legitimate employees.

According to Aliyu, the probe revealed that some senior officials allegedly enrolled relatives and associates on payrolls and diverted the salaries for personal use.

In one instance, a suspect allegedly listed his wife, son, and mother-in-law on the payroll while also collecting salaries meant for 12 other workers.

The investigation affected at least 50 MDAs, with some institutions recording significantly higher numbers of fake workers.

The Nigeria Police Force topped the list with 570 suspected fake workers.

Other affected agencies include the National Water Resources Authority with 80, the Federal Ministry of Works with 56, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with 24.

The Ministry of Defence recorded 19 fake workers, while the Ministries of Power and Industry, Trade and Investment had 17 each. The Federal Ministry of Health had 15, and the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation recorded 12.

Aliyu added that the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Ministry of Interior were also implicated, although specific figures for those institutions were not disclosed as investigations continue.