Tinubu orders forensic audit of IPPIS, federal agencies over ghost workers, fake entities
President Bola Tinubu has directed a comprehensive forensic audit of federal government systems, including the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and government agencies.
Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy, said in a statement on Friday that Tinubu asked Taiwo Oyedele, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, to oversee the exercise.
The presidential spokesperson said the directive followed the resolution of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on August 19, 2026, in response to findings by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on “fake agencies”, ghost workers and other control failures.
According to Onanuga, the audit is expected to determine the nature and extent of weaknesses in government’s control systems and how such weaknesses have been exploited.
He said the exercise would have two interconnected components.
The first component will focus on a forensic audit of government systems, particularly IPPIS and related payroll, personnel, pension and financial-management platforms.
It will examine reported cases of ghost workers and payroll fraud, reconcile figures 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 examine the interfaces between IPPIS and other government platforms, including the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), Remita, Treasury Single Account (TSA) and Sub-TSA.
Onanuga said the review would determine whether identified fraud resulted from system defects, process failures, inadequate segregation of duties or deliberate circumvention of established controls.
The second component will cover all federal government agencies, departments, commissions, councils, parastatals and other government bodies.
It will establish a definitive inventory of such entities and verify their legal basis, while examining how they obtain official recognition, budgetary consideration, correspondence privileges, office facilities and access to government systems.
The exercise will also assess governance, procurement, internal-audit and oversight controls across government to identify and close systemic weaknesses that could allow irregular entities or individuals to access public resources.
Tinubu directed that the exercise be conducted with the highest standards of independence, professionalism and forensic integrity.
The audit team will have access to relevant government systems and records and will collaborate with the ICPC to ensure that the review complements ongoing investigations, prosecutions and recoveries.
Onanuga said the president expects the exercise to go beyond identifying individual cases of fraud or administrative failure.
He said the audit is also intended to strengthen the architecture of government, close systemic loopholes, improve data verification and reconciliation, reinforce accountability and ensure that only duly constituted entities and eligible personnel have access to government resources.
The exercise, he added, underscores Tinubu’s commitment to strengthening transparency, accountability, fiscal governance and institutional integrity across the federal government.
