“Nearly 1,400 Workers Missing”: Civil Service Agency Audit Requested by Ministry of Local Government Leadership Exposes Alleged Ghost Names, Payroll Fraud

A bombshell verification exercise by the Civil Service Agency personally recommended by the current leadership of the Ministry of Local Government to clean up inherited personnel records, strengthen accountability, and establish payroll credibility has uncovered what officials describe as a deeply troubling workforce crisis, with nearly 1,400 employees failing to show up for mandatory verification, raising fresh fears of ghost workers, chronic absenteeism, and possible abuse of public funds.

Officials of the ministry clarified that the employees now being scrutinized were recruited before the current administration assumed office, emphasizing that the verification was initiated by the present leadership to determine who is legitimately employed, who is actively working, and who should remain on government payroll.

“This exercise was our recommendation because accountability begins with knowing exactly who is on the payroll and who is serving the Liberian people,” ministry officials stated, insisting that the current leadership is determined to clean up the institution rather than protect irregularities inherited from the past.

Presenting the findings, Josiah Joekai, Director General of the Civil Service Agency, described the results as alarming after a 24-day nationwide personnel audit conducted across Liberia’s fifteen counties involving 4,724 employees assigned at the ministry.

“This is not normal. When almost three out of every ten employees on government payroll cannot be physically accounted for, then we have a serious integrity problem,” Joekai declared while unveiling the report.

According to the CSA findings, only 3,325 employees, representing 71 percent, were successfully verified, while 1,381 workers nearly 29 percent of the ministry’s workforce failed to appear for the mandatory exercise.

“When people collect government salaries but cannot be found, cannot produce records, or cannot justify their employment status, then serious questions must be asked,” Joekai warned. “These numbers point directly to possible ghost workers, payroll leakages, and accountability failures.”

Beyond the missing workers, the verification also exposed widespread personnel documentation gaps, with numerous employee files lacking complete employment records, academic credentials, and recommendation letters required for public service employment.

The audit further recommended disciplinary actions against hundreds of workers, including salary deductions for 77 employees, one-month unpaid suspensions for 305 workers for prolonged absenteeism, and dismissal recommendations for 92 employees nationwide, as the ministry’s leadership pledged full support for reforms aimed at restoring integrity, transparency, and public confidence in one of Liberia’s key government institutions.