A shocking audit of the National Service Authority (NSA) has revealed widespread irregularities, including the discovery that more than 1,000 infants — some under a year old — were listed as service personnel, siphoning funds meant for legitimate recruits.

The Ministry of Youth Development and Empowerment, on the directive of President John Mahama, suspended the Authority’s Central Management System (CMS) on June 18, citing serious credibility issues.

The suspension has temporarily delayed this year’s national service postings.

“If the system was truly foolproof, babies under one year without Ghana Cards would never have appeared on our payroll,” Acting Executive Director Ruth Dela Seddoh told the media. “Yet nearly 1,000 infants somehow ended up in the database.”

Seddoh highlighted further loopholes: “The system should have been able to identify minors under 18 and flag them out. It failed to do so. Even worse, we found almost 3,000 people over 80 years of age still drawing allowances, despite the official service exit age being 40.”

She questioned how such anomalies could persist: “Why would individuals above 40, some even over 80, be classified as national service personnel?”

Despite the scandal, the NSA has reassured graduates awaiting postings. “We have set up a transition team and finalized the framework for a new, more reliable system. By November 1, 2025, postings will be released as promised,” Seddoh confirmed.

The revelations have already triggered changes within the institution, including the reassignment of former acting Director Felix Gyamfi to the Ministry of Finance.

As reforms roll out, the NSA says it is committed to building a transparent and accountable system that will prevent such payroll fraud from happening again.