By The Metro 
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has ordered a comprehensive forensic audit of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and all Federal Government agencies, ministries and related institutions.
The directive was disclosed in a statement issued on Friday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy.
Tinubu directed the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, to oversee and coordinate the exercise.
The audit follows the resolution of the Federal Executive Council on August 19, 2026, in response to findings by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) concerning “fake agencies”, ghost workers and other control failures within government systems.
According to the statement, the exercise will determine the nature and extent of weaknesses in government’s control architecture and establish how such loopholes may have been exploited.
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The first component will focus on IPPIS and related payroll, personnel, pension and financial management platforms.
It will investigate reported cases of ghost workers and payroll fraud, reconcile figures identified by the ICPC, trace how fictitious or ineligible persons were enrolled and examine access, identity, biometric and bank account controls.
The audit will also examine the relationship between IPPIS and other government platforms, including the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS), Remita, Treasury Single Account (TSA) and Sub-TSA.
The second component will cover all Federal Government agencies, departments, commissions, councils, parastatals and other government bodies.
The exercise will establish a definitive inventory of such entities, verify their legal basis and examine how they obtain official recognition, budgetary consideration, correspondence privileges, office facilities and access to government systems.
It will also assess governance, procurement, internal audit and oversight mechanisms across government to identify and close systemic weaknesses that could allow irregular entities or individuals to access public resources.
President Tinubu directed that the audit 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 exercise complements ongoing investigations, prosecutions and recoveries.
Tinubu said the exercise should go beyond identifying individual cases of fraud or administrative failure to strengthening the overall architecture of government.
The President expects the audit to 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 Presidency, underscores Tinubu’s commitment to transparency, accountability, fiscal governance and institutional integrity across the Federal Government.