By Ayo Ayodele
George Nwabueze, the National Coordinator and Executive Director of the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office, has denied allegations by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission that he was operating a fake federal agency.
Nwabueze said the Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office was a project office under the supervision of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and had existed for about 16 years.
The ICPC had on Friday announced that President Bola Tinubu ordered Nwabueze’s arrest over his alleged role in operating and promoting the outfit, which the commission described as a fake federal agency.
The commission also alleged that the office was being run with the support of some senior officials in the OSGF.
But Nwabueze, speaking on Saturday, rejected the allegation and questioned how an initiative he claimed had operated under the OSGF since 2010 could suddenly be classified as fake.
“Made in Nigeria Special Project Office is a project office in the OSGF. We don’t know where fake agency comes from,” he said.
To support his claim, Nwabueze posted an appointment letter on LinkedIn dated October 3, 2025, purportedly issued by the OSGF.
The letter, referenced OSGF/MIN/59310/11/205 and signed by the Permanent Secretary, Political and Economic Affairs Office, Nadungu Gagare, conveyed the approval of Nwabueze’s appointment as National Coordinator/Executive Director of the Made-in-Nigeria Project Office.
According to the document, his five-year appointment commenced in July 2025 and was renewable.
The letter stated that the appointment followed an evaluation of Nwabueze’s commitment, contributions and capacity to deliver on the mandate of the project office.
It also outlined his responsibilities to include supervising programmes and projects, coordinating state and regional coordinators, and organising exhibitions, trade expos and economic summits to promote Nigerian products and services.
Another document shared by Nwabueze showed that the office had in April 2025 sought to be granted Special Project status.
The proposal, signed by Gagare and addressed to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, stated that the initiative had promoted Nigerian-made products and services and organised trade exhibitions and economic forums.
It argued that granting the project special status would strengthen its credibility and contribute to employment generation, economic growth, poverty reduction and the promotion of domestic production.
However, the ICPC chairman, Dr Musa Aliyu, SAN, had identified the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office as one of the outfits uncovered during the commission’s investigation into the alleged fictitious Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council.
Aliyu said investigators discovered that the office had been allocated space within the OSGF premises without presidential authorisation. He also identified Nwabueze as the promoter of the outfit and alleged that he had the backing of some senior public servants.
Documents released by Nwabueze, however, appear to challenge the allegation that the project lacked official backing.
A report published by the organisation also documented a stakeholders’ engagement in Nasarawa State involving Governor Abdullahi Sule, who was quoted as saying the state had adopted the Federal Government’s Made-in-Nigeria initiative and included it in its 2026 budget.
The organisation’s website also lists Nwabueze as Executive Director/National Coordinator and features national, zonal and state coordinators.
However, an OSGF staff member told Sunday PUNCH that the office had been shut for months and was not operating as an agency.
“It was not operating as an agency but I know was under investigation… The office was shut months ago,” the source said.
The conflicting claims have raised questions over the legal and administrative status of the project office and its relationship with the OSGF.
While the ICPC maintains that the office was operating without presidential authorisation, documents produced by Nwabueze indicate that the OSGF had formally appointed him to head the project.
The OSGF spokesman, Christopher Ugwuegbulam, requested that questions be formally submitted to the office before a response could be provided.
Efforts to reach the ICPC spokesman, John Odey, were unsuccessful as of the time of filing the report.
Meanwhile, police sources said the force had not been formally briefed about the matter and that any manhunt for Nwabueze would only begin after an official briefing.