Ghost Workers: EFCC Probes Civil Servants

The ghost worker syndrome in Nigeria is at its peak, as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has commenced probing of some civil servants over allegations that ghost workers thrive in the service force.

The Federal Government owes retirees a huge sum of about N293bn, and according to The Head of Service of the Federation, Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita, “the government was at crossroads on how to get resources to service the debts”

She said “On assumption of office, I met service-wide staff claims for promotion arrears, first 28 days, repatriation allowance, death benefits and other staff claims totalling about N293bn. The issue was presented to Mr President and he expressed deep concern and immediately directed the Minister of Finance to address the situation.

“The payments would have been made but for the resource constraints of the government. We are working with the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation on the phased payment formula and would conclude in due course”

Still on the integration of civil servants she said “This is the first time the administration is tackling the issue of ghost workers like this. We are cleaning the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System and a lot of suspicious names have been detected. The introduction of Banks Verification Number has also helped in the detection of ghost workers. Many people are facing interrogation with the EFCC.

“You will just see them and later you won’t find them again; they have not been kidnapped but they are answering different questions from the EFCC,” she said in response to questions on sanctions for those involved.