The National Service Authority (NSA) has uncovered a major payroll fraud scheme at its Birim North District office in the Eastern Region, implicating two of its senior officials.
In a press statement dated May 14 and signed by the Director General, Mr. Felix Gyamfi, the Authority disclosed that the fraud was detected through a tip-off from a whistleblower.
The District Manager and the Management Information Systems (MIS) Manager have since been interdicted pending further investigations.
“During a meeting convened this morning, both individuals were presented with substantial evidence of their misconduct. In further discussions, the two officers admitted to their direct involvement in the fraudulent activity,” the statement said.
Fake allowances paid to ghost personnel
According to the NSA, preliminary findings revealed that the two officials knowingly validated and processed allowances for at least 29 individuals in the 2024/2025 service year and 49 others in the 2023/2024 cycle.
These individuals were falsely presented as regular National Service Personnel while in fact, they were either on study leave with pay or already engaged in full-time employment.
“This action is part of a larger payroll fraud which has bedeviled the Authority for years,” Mr. Gyamfi noted, adding that the Authority is aware the issue is not isolated to Birim North but part of a broader systemic problem within the NSA nationwide.
Wider reforms underway amid record falsification
The NSA also revealed a troubling trend where individuals already employed as teachers, nurses, midwives, customs officers, and other public and private sector workers deliberately falsify their records to enroll in the national service program.
These individuals conceal their permanent employment status in order to illegally receive monthly service allowances.
“These individuals, who are confirmed to be permanent staff within the Public Service, are found to deliberately conceal their employment status and fraudulently enroll as regular National Service Personnel,” the statement added.
As part of ongoing reforms, the NSA says it is committed to sanitizing the system and eliminating payroll fraud, and it has reiterated its zero-tolerance stance on misconduct.
