By ebosele@hotmail.com –
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, to oversee and coordinate a comprehensive forensic audit of Federal Government systems.
The audit will cover the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS), Federal Government agencies and their administration, as well as internal control mechanisms.
The directive followed the Federal Executive Council’s resolution of August 19, 2026, which was prompted by findings from the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on alleged “fake agencies,” ghost workers and other control failures.
According to a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the exercise is designed to establish the nature and extent of weaknesses in the Government’s control systems and determine how such weaknesses may have been exploited.
The audit will comprise two interconnected components.
The first will focus on a forensic review 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 exercise will also examine the interfaces between IPPIS and other government platforms, including the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), Remita, the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and Sub-TSA.
The review will 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 ministries, departments, agencies, 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 audit will also assess governance, procurement, internal audit and oversight controls across government, with the aim of closing systemic weaknesses that could enable irregular entities or individuals to access public resources.
President Tinubu directed that the exercise be conducted in accordance 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 exercise complements ongoing investigations, prosecutions and recoveries.
The President expects the exercise to go beyond identifying individual cases of fraud or administrative failure.
It is also expected 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, according to the statement, underscores the President’s commitment to strengthening transparency, accountability, fiscal governance and institutional integrity across the Federal Government.
