The Anambra State Local Government Service Commission has uncovered over 427 ghost workers fraudulently earning salaries from the state government.
Chairman of the Commission, Vin Ezeaka, disclosed this during a press briefing in Awka, the state capital, on Friday. He also revealed that six senior employees across various local government areas had forged their certificates, falsely claiming they were issued by Imo State University.
Ezeaka detailed the findings from a recent staff personnel audit aimed at sanitizing the local government system. Among the 427 ghost workers identified, 59 were deceased commission staff, 40 had retired but remained on the payroll, and 11 were living abroad.
“The discovery was made during a staff personnel audit launched to sanitize the local government system in the state. Out of the 427 ghost workers uncovered, 59 were staff of the Commission who had died a long time ago, 40 others had retired and are still on the payroll of the commission, while about 11 others were staff living abroad whose names were still on the payroll of the government,” Ezeaka explained.
He added that some ghost workers were associated with Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, and Nwafor Orizu College of Education, Nsugbe. The audit also identified 222 workers on the payroll who could not be verified as employees in any of the 21 local government areas.
“We wrote to the Joint Account Committee (JAC) to remove them from the payroll. Some individuals have come forward to voluntarily retire, but we refused because you can’t cheat the government and then seek retirement,” Ezeaka stated. He emphasized that those involved in these fraudulent activities would face legal consequences according to civil service rules.
Ezeaka also addressed the issue of certificate forgery within the local government system. “Apart from this discovery, made at the end of May 2024, we descended on the certificate racketeering cartel within the local government system. We set up a committee which came up with reports of people with suspicious certificates working in various local government areas of Anambra State.”
The screening committee found that six out of 14 certificates submitted by employees purportedly from Imo State University were fake. Ezeaka confirmed that investigations are ongoing, and those found guilty will be prosecuted.
The Commission’s efforts aim to restore integrity and accountability in the local government system, ensuring that only legitimate employees are on the payroll.
