The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered another alleged fake government agency operating within the premises of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF).
The purported agency, identified as the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office, was allegedly operating without presidential approval and in breach of established public service regulations.
Chairman of the ICPC, Dr Musa Aliyu, SAN, disclosed the development on Friday while briefing State House correspondents after updating President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the commission’s ongoing investigation into fictitious government bodies.
According to Aliyu, the purported office had been allocated space within the OSGF despite allegedly lacking the required authorisation from the President.
The ICPC identified Prince George Buchi Nwabueze as the promoter of the office and said preliminary investigations indicated that he operated under several variations of his name.
These, according to the commission, include George Nathan, George Nathan Nwabueze, Honourable George Buchi Nwabueze, Prince George Buchi Nwabueze and George Nwabueze.
Aliyu said the investigation had also uncovered suspected collaborators within the OSGF who allegedly facilitated the activities of the purported agency.
He explained that the commission was engaging the OSGF to obtain relevant records and information that could assist investigators in establishing the full circumstances surrounding the establishment and operation of the office.
The ICPC chairman said the discovery was part of a wider investigation into fictitious government agencies and procedural weaknesses within the public service.
The latest development comes shortly after the commission uncovered the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, which resulted in the prosecution of its self-styled Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, over allegations of forgery and impersonation.
An interim ICPC report submitted to President Tinubu on August 6 had also identified two other purportedly fictitious bodies — the FCT Investment Promotion Agency and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency and Public-Private Partnership.
Following the latest briefing, President Tinubu directed the immediate arrest of Nwabueze and ordered the suspension of three permanent secretaries — M.S. Danjuma, Nadungu Gagare and Richard P. Pheelangwah — pending further investigation.
The ICPC said it would continue its probe into the purported National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office and other entities uncovered in the course of its investigation.
