A recent investigation by The Fourth Estate has uncovered a massive fraud scheme within the National Service Scheme (NSS), despite the integration of the Ghana Card into the registration system. This revelation contradicts former Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawawa’s claim that the Ghana Card would eliminate “ghost names” from government payrolls.

The investigation found that tens of thousands of ghost names were smuggled into the system through a loophole that allowed “private candidates” to register. These individuals, who were supposed to be graduates who missed their service in previous years, were instead fake identities created to exploit the system.

The findings show that multiple ghost names were linked to the same fake student IDs and Ghana Card numbers. In some cases, the same name appeared over 200 times, raising concerns about the effectiveness of the Ghana Card in preventing payroll fraud.

The Executive Director of the National Service Authority (NSA), Felix Gyamfi, has disputed the accuracy of the investigation’s findings, stating that an investigation is ongoing to establish culpability.

This development has sparked fresh concerns about the reliability of Ghana’s digital identity system in preventing fraud. The Ghana Card was touted as a solution to eliminate ghost names from government payrolls, but this alleged NSS fraud has exposed a significant flaw in the system.

By Nii Odartey Lamptey