Japa: Tinubu's Government Takes Key Action against Ghost Workers Still Receiving Salaries
- The Tinubu-led government has launched a personnel audit to identify ghost workers, especially those who have relocated abroad but continue to earn salaries
- The audit, initiated by the Accountant General’s office, targets MDAs under its pool, with a May 2 deadline for submission of updated staff records
- This action follows President Tinubu’s 2023 directive to recover funds from absconded civil servants and discipline complicit supervisors
The federal government has launched a comprehensive personnel audit aimed at exposing and eliminating ‘ghost workers.'
The move also includes civil servants who have relocated abroad but continue to receive salaries from the national payroll.
Source: Twitter
The move, spearheaded by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF), comes amid increasing concern over payroll fraud tied to the mass emigration trend, popularly known in Nigeria as japa, Vanguard reported.
FG begins service-wide audit
A memo dated April 2025 and signed by Dauda Abdulhamid, director of Administration at the OAGF, announced the immediate commencement of a Service-wide Nominal Roll Update and personnel audit across all Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) under its purview.
“The AGF has approved the conduct of a Personnel Audit Exercise across the Headquarters, Federal Pay Offices, and all MDAs under the pool of the OAGF,” the circular read in part.
“All affected MDAs are required to complete the attached template accurately and in full... Non-compliance may lead to affected staff being classified as ghost workers.”
The audit will involve submission of both digital and authenticated physical records by May 2, 2025.
Desk officers have been warned to ensure full compliance or risk sanctions.
Action follows Tinubu’s 2023 payroll fraud order
The development follows President Bola Tinubu’s directive in 2023 ordering a full-scale audit of the civil service after it emerged that many federal government employees who had emigrated abroad were still drawing salaries from public funds.
The President had warned that all such workers must refund illegally received wages, and further directed disciplinary measures against any supervisors or department heads who enabled or overlooked the fraud, Punch reported.
“No government can afford to pay salaries to those who are not rendering services. Anyone involved in this practice—whether staff or their supervisors—must be held accountable,” Tinubu had stated at the time.
Departments warned against lax oversight
Source: UGC
The OAGF circular also reminded MDAs that accountability rests not only on individual workers but also on the leadership of each department.
Internal auditors, finance directors, and human resources officials have been instructed to validate all personnel records as part of the audit process.
The audit is expected to address systemic payroll inefficiencies and free up funds for critical government functions.
Rising concerns over japa-linked fraud
The japa phenomenon, referring to the wave of young professionals and civil servants emigrating in search of better opportunities, has left gaps across various sectors—including healthcare, education, and government institutions. However, recent findings suggest that many of those who relocated failed to resign or notify their ministries, continuing to receive government salaries unlawfully.
“This is a serious abuse of public trust and resources,” said a senior OAGF official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“The audit is a necessary step to clean up the payroll and restore integrity to the civil service.”
Hamma Hayatu blasts FG over lingering ghost workers scandal
Public affairs analyst, Hamma Hayatu, while speaking with Legit.ng on Sunday, April 27, criticised President Bola Tinubu’s administration and past governments for what he called the "shameful failure" to tackle Nigeria’s ghost worker crisis.
Reacting to the new personnel audit ordered by the Federal Government, Hayatu said:
"It is an embarrassment that after decades, Nigeria is still struggling with ghost workers. Every government comes with promises, but none has decisively ended this fraud."
He added that the continued existence of ghost workers showed a deep-seated culture of negligence and corruption.
"Launching audits every few years without meaningful results only exposes the unseriousness of those entrusted with public funds," Hayatu said.
He urged the Tinubu administration to "go beyond rhetoric" and finally deliver lasting solutions.
Jigawa govt uncovers 6,348 ghost workers
Previously, Legit.ng reported that the Jigawa state government disclosed that it uncovered 6,348 ghost workers during its recent staff verification exercise.
The discovery was announced by Mr. Sagir Musa, the commissioner for Information, Youths, Sports, and Culture, in a statement on Tuesday.
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Source: Legit.ng
