A damning report by the Auditor-General has exposed serious weaknesses in Ghana’s public pension system, revealing that the state continued to pay millions of cedis into the bank accounts of deceased pensioners for several years.
The audit uncovered that a total of GH¢7,494,975.34 was unlawfully disbursed to four deceased pensioners between February 2019 and March 2026.
The irregularities, detailed in the Report of the Auditor-General on the Public Accounts of Ghana for the year ended December 31, 2025, have raised fresh concerns about poor oversight and delayed action by the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD).
The payments were in violation of Regulation 88 of the Public Financial Management Regulations, 2019 (L.I. 2378), which requires immediate verification to prevent payments to deceased beneficiaries.
The Auditor-General has directed the Controller and Accountant-General to recover the full amount, including interest calculated at the prevailing Bank of Ghana lending rate, from the next-of-kin who may have accessed or benefited from the funds.
“Any recovered funds should be paid into the Auditor-General’s Recoveries Account at the Bank of Ghana,” the report stated.
The Auditor-General warned that where the funds cannot be recovered, legal action should be taken against both the banks involved and the next-of-kin.
The latest revelation forms part of a broader pattern of payroll irregularities uncovered during the 2025 audit, as the Auditor-General continues efforts to curb financial leakages and strengthen accountability in the management of public funds.
ALSO READ:
