FG tightens payroll rules, blocks unverified enrolments

The Federal Government has implemented stricter verification procedures for the recruitment of civil servants, mandating that no employee can be added to the federal payroll without undergoing mandatory documentation and eligibility checks. These reforms, aimed at enhancing accountability, minimizing payroll irregularities, and optimizing government personnel expenditure, were announced by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) on Monday.

According to Bawa Mokwa, the OAGF’s Director of Press and Public Relations, the new directive will ensure only properly documented and eligible personnel are included in the government’s payroll system.

Previously, no formal verification process existed for newly recruited employees, leading to potential issues with payroll accuracy and eligibility. The OAGF has now established a multi-tiered verification system that requires Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) to submit comprehensive documentation along with recruitment approvals, appointment letters, waivers, and other supporting records before an employee can be enrolled.

The verification process includes scrutiny of employee records, salary structures, grade levels, allowances, and financial entitlements such as pension fund administrator information, pension identification numbers, National Housing Fund registration, and tax records.

Once the initial verification is complete, the employee records are returned to the relevant MDA for further confirmation. The final approval for payroll admission rests with the Accountant-General of the Federation, who retains the authority to grant or deny admission based on the validation outcomes. The OAGF emphasized that any payroll application with incomplete documentation or discrepancies will be deferred until all issues are resolved.

Officials involved in the payroll admission process, including Permanent Secretaries, Heads of Agencies, and Payroll Validating Officers, are accountable for adherence to these new regulations.

These measures are part of a broader re-engineering of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) to improve transparency, efficiency, and accountability in personnel management across all federal institutions. The reforms also shift greater responsibility onto individual MDAs to ensure their nominal rolls align with approved recruitment records and personnel budgets.