The Civil Service Agency (CSA) has announced the removal of 412 ghost names from the government payroll, resulting in savings of over one million USD. The revelation was made during a special press briefing held by the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs, and Tourism on Wednesday.
CSA Director-General Josiah Joekai stated that the ghost names were identified and verified by the agency’s technical team. The investigation aimed to independently confirm the existence of ghost employees—individuals listed on the payroll but not actually working for the government.
The audit uncovered significant discrepancies across several government entities including 28 ghost employees at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Liberia National Police: 98 ghost employees, Liberia Land Authority: 41 ghost employees, Ministry of Mines and Energy: 57 ghost employees and Civil Service Agency: 29 ghost employees
The fraudulent salaries, totaling over one million USD, have since been redirected to the government’s account.Mr. Joekai reiterated his commitment to ongoing reform at the CSA. He announced that individuals identified in the audit will not receive salaries starting in April.
They are required to participate in a one-month verification process, failing which their names will be permanently removed from the payroll by May 2024.The audit also revealed a broader issue of payroll fraud. Of the employees audited, 9,287, representing 13.7% of employee records across 91 spending entities were not available for physical verification.
This gap indicates that these payments were likely going to ghost employees, leading to significant financial losses. The government has been losing approximately 3.76 million USD monthly due to these discrepancies.
To address this, the CSA has initiated a comprehensive one-month verification process. Employees who fail to comply will have their names removed from the payroll, ensuring that only legitimate employees receive government salaries.
Joekai expressed gratitude to development partners, including the U.S. government, the European Union, the Swedish government, and the World Bank Group, for their support in the payroll compliance audit process.
The public sector modernization project, implemented six years ago by the CSA and the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning, aimed to enhance public financial management. A key component of this project was the establishment of a national payroll management and central system to ensure accountability and transparency in the use of public funds.
The CSA’s recent actions are a significant step towards eliminating fraud and ensuring that public funds are used appropriately. The agency’s ongoing efforts reflect its dedication to maintaining integrity within the civil service and safeguarding public resources.
