The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered 908 suspected fake workers allegedly inserted into the payrolls of several federal ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), in a fraud scheme involving hundreds of millions of naira.
The anti-corruption agency said it recovered approximately N942 million linked to fraudulent salary payments made to the fictitious workers.
According to BBC Pidgin, ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, disclosed that the discovery was made during an investigation initiated by the commission in 2024 following the detection of irregularities in pension payments.
The commission described fake workers as individuals whose names are unlawfully added to government payrolls despite having no legitimate employment with the affected institutions.
Aliyu said the investigation revealed instances in which some senior government officials allegedly enrolled their relatives and associates as workers and diverted the salaries paid to them for personal gain.
He cited a case involving a suspect who allegedly inserted the names of his wife, son and mother-in-law into the government payroll, while also collecting the salaries of 12 other workers.
According to the ICPC chairman, the investigation covered at least 50 federal ministries, departments and agencies, with some institutions recording a higher number of suspected fake workers than others.
The Nigeria Police Force recorded the highest number, with 570 suspected fake workers uncovered.
The National Water Resources Authority followed with 80, while 56 suspected fake workers were discovered in the Federal Ministry of Works.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs recorded 24 suspected fake workers, while the Ministry of Defence had 19.
The Ministry of Power and the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment each recorded 17 suspected fake workers.
The Federal Ministry of Health had 15, while 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 among the government institutions where suspected fake workers were discovered.
However, he did not disclose the number of affected names in the two institutions, saying investigations into the matter were still ongoing.
