Ghana Launches Probe Into 81,000 Potential Fake Names On The Payroll

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Ghana Launches Probe Into 81,000 Potential Fake Names On The Payroll

Loveworld / 1 minute

February 13, 2025

1 min read

Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama announced on Wednesday that an investigation would be launched into the operations of the National Service Authority under the previous administration after over 81,000 suspected ghost names were found on its payroll. The discovery came after a headcount conducted to settle outstanding allowance payments for the agency, which oversees the mandatory one-year service placements for graduates.
The investigation has raised questions about what payments may have been made to these ghost names. According to a statement from the presidency, the finance ministry had already disbursed 226 million Ghana cedis ($14.6 million) to approximately 98,000 legitimate beneficiaries.
Mahama, who resumed office in January, has vowed to eliminate deep-rooted corruption in the country, which is recovering from a severe economic crisis.
On the same day, Ghana’s anti-corruption agency, the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), declared former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta a “wanted fugitive” in relation to his alleged involvement in five transactions under investigation for corruption and related offenses. Ofori-Atta was not immediately available for comment.