President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed a comprehensive forensic audit of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and all Federal Government agencies to root out ghost workers, payroll fraud, and other systemic control failures.
The directive, conveyed in a statement by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, assigns oversight and coordination of the exercise to the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele.
The order follows the resolution of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting of August 19, 2026, which was taken in response to findings by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on the existence of “fake agencies,” ghost workers, and other weaknesses in government control systems.
According to the Presidency, the audit will establish the nature and extent of these weaknesses and determine how they may have been exploited to divert public resources. The exercise comprises two interconnected components.
The first will focus on a forensic examination of government systems, with particular attention to IPPIS and related payroll, personnel, pension, and financial-management platforms. It will examine reported cases of ghost workers and payroll fraud, reconcile figures already identified by the ICPC, trace how fictitious or ineligible persons were enrolled, and review access, identity, biometric, and bank-account controls. The audit will also scrutinise interfaces between IPPIS and other platforms, including the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), Remita, the Treasury Single Account (TSA), and Sub-TSA.
The second component will involve a sweeping review of all Federal Government agencies, departments, commissions, councils, parastatals, and other government bodies. It will establish a definitive inventory of such entities, verify the legal basis for their existence, and examine how they obtain official recognition, budgetary consideration, correspondence privileges, office facilities, and access to government systems.
The audit team will be granted full access to relevant government systems and records to ensure a thorough and transparent process.
President Tinubu’s directive underscores the administration’s commitment to safeguarding public funds, strengthening internal controls, and ensuring that only legitimate personnel and properly constituted agencies remain on the Federal Government’s payroll and operational framework.