Tinubu Tasks Finance Minister With Forensic Audit of IPPIS, Federal Agencies

President Bola Tinubu has instructed Taiwo Oyedele, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, to supervise an extensive forensic audit targeting various Federal Government systems, notably the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS).

This mandate was officially conveyed through a statement issued on Friday by Bayo Onanuga, the President's Special Adviser on Information and Strategy. The statement specified that the audit's scope encompasses IPPIS, all Federal Government agencies, alongside their administrative processes and internal control mechanisms.

This presidential directive stems from a resolution by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on August 19, 2026. The FEC's decision was prompted by discoveries made by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) regarding “fake agencies,” the prevalence of ghost workers, and other systemic control deficiencies. The statement further indicated that the comprehensive exercise aims to “establish the nature and extent of weaknesses in Government’s control system, and determine how such weaknesses have been exploited.”

The audit process is structured into two interrelated parts. The initial component will concentrate on a detailed forensic examination of government systems, with a particular emphasis on IPPIS and its associated platforms for payroll, personnel management, pensions, and financial administration. As per the official communication, this phase will “examine reported cases of ghost workers and payroll fraud, reconcile the figures identified by the ICPC, trace how fictitious or ineligible persons were enrolled, and review access, identity, biometric and bank-account controls.”

Furthermore, the investigation will scrutinize the integration points between IPPIS and other crucial government platforms like GIFMIS, Remita, the Treasury Single Account (TSA), and the Sub-Treasury Account. Its objective is to ascertain “whether fraud resulted from system defects, process failures, inadequate segregation of duties or deliberate circumvention.”

The second segment of the audit is designed to encompass all entities within the Federal Government, including agencies, departments, commissions, councils, parastatals, and other governmental organizations. This part of the exercise, as stated, will “establish a definitive inventory of such bodies and verify their legal basis,” alongside investigating the procedures through which entities gain official recognition, budget allocations, correspondence rights, office infrastructure, and entry to government systems.

It will also evaluate governance frameworks, procurement processes, internal-audit functions, and oversight mechanisms across the entire government structure “to close systemic weaknesses that could allow irregular entities or persons to access public resources.”

President Tinubu specifically instructed that this audit be carried out “with the highest standards of independence, professionalism and forensic integrity.” The statement further clarified that the audit team would be granted access to all pertinent government systems and records, and would collaborate closely with the ICPC to ensure the review supports existing investigations, prosecutions, and asset recoveries.

According to Mr. Onanuga, President Tinubu's expectation is that the audit will “go beyond identifying individual cases of fraud or administrative failure.” The official communication highlighted that the audit's primary focus is on “strengthening the architecture of Government, closing systemic loopholes, improving data verification and reconciliation, reinforcing accountability, and ensuring that only duly constituted entities and eligible personnel have access to Government resources.” This extensive undertaking, the statement concluded, “underscores the President’s commitment to strengthening transparency, accountability, fiscal governance and institutional integrity across the Federal Government.”