Auditor-General recoups GH¢10m in unearned salaries, CID to go after payroll officers

The Auditor-General’s Department says it has retrieved GH¢10 million in wrongful salary payments, which have since been deposited into the Consolidated Fund at the Bank of Ghana.

According to Auditor-General Johnson Akuamoah Asiedu, the money was returned voluntarily by persons flagged in an ongoing special audit into unearned salaries a problem that has burdened the state for years.

“So far, the audit shows that 53,311 government workers who had officially left the public service remained on the payroll, resulting in over GH¢150 million in unearned salaries,” Mr. Asiedu disclosed in an interview with the Daily Graphic.

The report, which spans 2023 to April 2025, uncovered weak payroll controls across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as well as Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs). Although records showed separation of staff due to retirement, resignation, contract expiration, dismissal, or death, such details were not relayed to the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD), allowing payments to continue.

Out of the 53,311 separated staff, 2,446 still drew salaries beyond their exit dates, creating unearned payments totalling GH¢150.36 million. The Auditor-General has directed that MDAs and MMDAs move swiftly to recover those funds.

Mr. Asiedu welcomed the voluntary refunds so far, stressing that early notification to affected individuals has sped up repayments while sparing the state costly litigation.

But he insisted that repayment alone was not enough. 

“We are collaborating with the Ministry of Finance and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to investigate and prosecute public officials who authorised or validated these fraudulent payments,” he warned.

The officials facing scrutiny include payroll validators, controllers, human resource managers, and institutional heads who either looked the other way or played a role in the irregularities. Dossiers on those individuals are being compiled for police action.

He emphasised that the special audit would cover all government agencies until every case is identified and addressed. Others who may have benefited were also urged to refund the monies voluntarily.

President John Dramani Mahama has already announced plans for special courts to speed up cases that arise from Auditor-General reports. Similarly, Finance Minister Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson has revealed that over 53,000 “ghost names” remain on the public payroll, accounting for more than GH¢150 million in unearned salaries.

The ghost names problem has appeared repeatedly in past audits. The 2022 Auditor-General’s Report, for instance, flagged millions paid to former staff who had exited the service.

Government has attempted to resolve the issue through payroll cleansing initiatives like the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Database (IPPD2). Still, delays in information flow and systemic lapses within departments continue to hamper progress.