The Office of the Auditor-General has issued an apology after a major error in its nationwide payroll audit report wrongly linked a public servant to an unearned salary of over GH¢427 million.
The clarification follows a nationwide payroll audit covering the period January 1, 2023, to June 30, 2025, after a media report cited Frank Oliver Kpodo as having received GH¢427,995,661.40 in unearned salary.
The figure was initially highlighted in a report by The Fourth Estate, which suggested that Mr Kpodo received an average of more than GH¢14 million monthly in unearned payments.
However, in a statement on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, the Auditor-General’s office explained that the amount was the result of a transpositional error and was not linked to the individual named.
“The GH¢427,995,661.40 relates to the Ministry of Education in respect of 3,476 unaccounted staff during the payroll audit,” the statement clarified.
The office further extended an apology to Mr Kpodo, government institutions, citizens and the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department, acknowledging the embarrassment and public concern caused.
“We extend our most sincere and unreserved apologies to Frank Oliver Kpodo for the distress and unwarranted public scrutiny this error may have caused.”
Meanwhile, the Controller and Accountant-General’s Department (CAGD) has also rejected social media claims alleging that a senior Ministry of Defence official received GH¢427 million in unearned salaries over 29 months.
It insisted that Ghana’s payroll system is built with strict safeguards to prevent such irregularities.
“The Government of Ghana payroll system runs on controls and automations which allow only approved pay structures by the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission to be processed for employees eligible under their conditions of service,” the department said.
It added that salaries undergo multiple validation processes, including approvals by heads of covered entities and internal checks before payments are effected.
“Monthly salaries are paid to eligible employees on the Government of Ghana payroll after online validation… These monthly payments are further subjected to internal quality processes to validate each salary payment,” it stated.
