The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered alleged payroll fraud involving ghost workers, including cases where government officials enrolled family members and collected multiple salaries.

The ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja while speaking at the 2026 Economic Confidential Lecture and National Spokespersons Award organised by Image Merchants Promotions Limited.

Aliyu said investigations by the commission revealed that one individual allegedly registered 14 members of his family on a government payroll, while another enrolled his wife, children and other relatives and collected 13 salaries.

He said the commission had also identified about 900 suspected ghost workers whose names were published to give them an opportunity to establish that they were legitimate government employees.

According to the ICPC chairman, the commission spent about a year investigating the suspected cases and uncovered various methods used to manipulate government payroll systems.

Aliyu explained that in some instances, the names of fictitious workers appeared on official payrolls alongside email addresses, while the bank account details attached to the records belonged to different individuals.

He warned that the financial implications of ghost workers extended beyond the payment of salaries, as fraudulent employees could also generate illegitimate claims for pensions, housing benefits, mortgages and health insurance.

The ICPC chairman further disclosed that the commission recovered more than N24 billion in alleged ghost-worker pension funds in 2024.

Aliyu said the commission was strengthening collaboration with other government agencies and adopting preventive measures to protect public resources and reduce corruption.

He stressed that the ICPC was increasingly prioritising the prevention of corruption and ensuring that government projects were properly implemented, 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?” he said.

Aliyu also advocated greater deployment of data and technology in the fight against corruption, noting that access to credible information and effective communication were crucial to improving public confidence in anti-corruption efforts.

Earlier, the Chief Executive Officer of Image Merchants Promotions Limited, Yusha’u Shuaib, said the event was aimed at promoting transparency, accountability, good governance and professionalism in public communication.