The Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine, has revealed that a former Chief Executive of the National Service Scheme (NSS) allegedly paid a Member of Parliament (MP) to suppress reports on the widely publicized ghost names scandal.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, March 24, 2025, Dr. Ayine disclosed that his office had obtained concrete evidence of financial transactions involving top executives of the NSS, private vendors, and other individuals linked to the scheme.
“Indeed, we now have evidence of payments made into the accounts of top National Service executives by vendors, private companies, and scheme staff.
“We also have proof that in November 2024, the CEO of the National Service Scheme and others paid a Ghanaian MP to kill the story in the media and to defend them. This is a developing case, and more details will emerge soon,” Dr. Ayine stated.
He, however, did not disclose the identities of those implicated in the scandal.
Massive Payroll Fraud Uncovered
Investigations into the NSS revealed that previous officials had bypassed mandatory validation processes, leading to the fraudulent addition of thousands of nonexistent names to the payroll. This scheme allowed millions of Ghana cedis meant for national service personnel to be siphoned.
The irregularities came to light during a headcount led by the Ministry of Finance as part of an effort to clear allowance arrears dating back to August 2024.
Following the verification exercise, GH₵226,019,224 was disbursed to pay 98,145 personnel—far fewer than the 180,030 names initially submitted, exposing the extent of the payroll fraud.
Authorities have vowed to intensify investigations and hold those responsible accountable.
