Ghana’s Auditor-General has apologized for a significant error in a nationwide payroll audit that incorrectly attributed more than GH₵427 million in unearned salary to a single public servant, citing a data transposition mistake.

The error emerged in an audit covering the period from January 1, 2023, to June 30, 2025, after a media report identified civil servant Frank Oliver Kpodo as the recipient of GH₵427,995,661.40 in improper payments. The figure, widely circulated, suggested monthly earnings exceeding GH₵14 million.

In a statement issued Tuesday, the Auditor-General’s office said the amount did not relate to Mr. Kpodo but instead reflected aggregated discrepancies tied to 3,476 unaccounted-for staff under the Ministry of Education.

“The GH₵427,995,661.40 relates to the Ministry of Education in respect of 3,476 unaccounted staff during the payroll audit,” the office said, attributing the misstatement to a transpositional error.

The Auditor-General extended an apology to Mr. Kpodo, as well as to government institutions and the public, acknowledging the reputational harm caused by the mistake.

Separately, the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department rejected claims circulating on social media that a senior official at the Ministry of Defence had received comparable sums in unearned salary over a 29-month period.

The department said Ghana’s payroll system includes multiple layers of automated controls and institutional oversight designed to prevent such irregularities. Salaries, it said, are processed only for employees approved under structures set by the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission and are subject to validation by entity heads and internal quality checks before payment.

Officials said the system’s safeguards make large-scale overpayments of the kind alleged highly unlikely.

Source:TheDotNews