Nigeria’s anti-corruption commission has uncovered a fourth fake federal agency, the National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office, prompting President Bola Tinubu to suspend three senior government officials and order the arrest of the agency’s promoter, Nwabueze George.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Related Offences Commission, known as the ICPC, identified the agency during a 30-day investigation whose findings were submitted to President Tinubu on Friday. The commission’s chairperson, Musa Aliyu, disclosed the findings to journalists after meeting with the president.
The ICPC said the organization operated without presidential authorization, yet documents show it presented itself to state governments as an official federal initiative operating from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, known as the OSGF, at Shagari House, Three Arms Zone, Abuja.
The agency’s letterheads read “The Presidency, National Brands Development, and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office” and identified the office as being under the OSGF director’s office. The documents included letters of appointment, approvals, and correspondence addressed to state governors across the country.
Between January and February, the agency wrote to governors in Lagos, Imo, Ondo, Sokoto, Edo, and Nasarawa states, seeking government support, state coordinators, funding, land, and participation in programs in Nigeria and abroad. All letters were signed by George, identified in the correspondence as the executive director of the National Coordinator, Made in Nigeria Project.
In a letter dated January 9 and marked “Third Reminder,” the agency wrote to Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu seeking the nomination and appointment of a Lagos State coordinator. The letter stated the nominee’s details would be used for formal confirmation and the issuance of an appointment letter from the Abuja office.
The agency told Sanwo-Olu that the appointment would facilitate collaboration between federal and state governments and promote local production, small and medium-sized enterprises, industrial growth, and international trade. The agency maintained a dedicated website and had installed state coordinators across all 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
A February 23 letter to Edo State sought authorization to pay for a summit in Bahrain, directing the state to deposit funds into naira and dollar accounts at Zenith Bank belonging to the Made in Nigeria Project Office, Abuja. The agency requested $2,500 per person for registration, exhibition, and participation.
The agency proposed a quota of five government officials and 25 private-sector participants from Edo State, bringing the total potential delegation to 30 people. At the stated rate, a full Edo delegation would have cost $75,000, equivalent to approximately 100 million naira at the exchange rate prevailing at the time.
Correspondence with Nasarawa State revealed the scope of the agency’s planned national structure. The agency wrote to Governor Abdullahi Sule seeking support for a stakeholders’ meeting in Lafia scheduled for April 28 to 30, which was to inaugurate a State Coordinators Executive Council representing all 36 states and the FCT.
In Ondo State, the agency wrote to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa on January 13 requesting land for a “Made in Nigeria Product Market,” describing the proposed facility as a national platform for promoting, producing, exhibiting, and commercializing Nigerian-made goods. The agency assured the governor the project would comply with the Ondo Master Plan.
A January 23 letter invited Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma as a special guest of honor and speaker at a national inaugural convention scheduled for February 5 to 7 in Lafia. The letter also asked the governor to provide financial support for transportation, hotel accommodation, feeding, conference materials, registration, training, and other logistics.
The agency subsequently invited states to participate in international product fairs in Burundi, Equatorial Guinea, China, South Korea, and Oman. A February 10 letter to Sokoto State Governor Ahmad Aliyu invited the state to food and agricultural expos in Bahrain and Azerbaijan, with the Bahrain event set for April 1 to 5 and the Azerbaijan event scheduled for May 5 to 8.
The discovery follows a separate fake agency case that made headlines two months earlier, in which the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, was named among senior officials implicated. The ICPC said the new agency’s uncovering occurred during that earlier investigation, marking the fourth such body the commission has exposed in the same 30-day inquiry into fake federal agencies in Nigeria.
