The National Service Authority (NSA) has uncovered widespread irregularities in its registration and payroll system, resulting in the flagging of 8,105 individuals and the suspension of 1,840 others pending further investigation.
The announcement was made by the Acting Director-General of the Authority, Ruth Dela Seddoh, during a press briefing on Monday, December 15, 2025.
According to her Seddoh, the irregularities were detected through a rigorous verification process aimed at ensuring the integrity of the national service scheme.
“Any fraud whatsoever, we commit and commission a team to go to the school where we suspect the fraud,” she explained.
“We ask them to enter their database. We cross-check the number of students who have officially graduated from the school and compare that with the number of students they have submitted to us. When you do that, you realize that some schools are complicit in this whole thing, and I must emphasize that it is a whole huge cartel.”
link All 12,000 NSS personnel registered in June must re-register – Acting NSA Director-General
The detailed and comprehensive investigation, she said, uncovered anomalies across three tertiary institutions: the University for Development Studies (UDS), Ghana Communication Technology University, and the Akenteng Appiah- Minka University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development.
“The outcome of the investigation is shocking,” Seddoh stated. “We made a shocking discovery that resulted in the flagging of 8,105 individuals in the system. Out of this number, 1,840 individuals have been completely suspended pending the conclusion of further investigations by the security agencies.”
link National Service: 7 key things prospective service personnel must know
The investigation also led to arrests, with ten members of staff from the implicated institutions currently under investigation. Some staff of the National Service Authority have also been arrested and are under interrogation by national security agencies.
Dela Seddoh stressed the severity of the irregularities and the potential impact had they gone undetected.
“These anomalies, if unchecked, would have allowed non-qualified individuals to be enrolled as national service personnel, causing significant financial loss to the state and undermining the integrity of the national service scheme,” she said.
The Acting Director-General further emphasised that the NSA has strengthened verification protocols to prevent a recurrence.
Measures include automated cross-checks between institutional databases and NSA records, periodic audits of tertiary institution submissions, and training for institutional staff on compliance and data integrity requirements.
“The swift and decisive action taken has preserved the credibility of the national service scheme and protected the state from potential losses estimated at over GH¢68 million annually,” she added.
Dela Seddoh urged all institutions and service personnel to comply fully with national service procedures to ensure fairness, transparency, and efficiency in the deployment of graduates across Ghana.
Watch the video below:
JKB/AM
From Village Girl to Presidency: Woman shares inspiring journey without formal education:
