Fresh Twist In PFIPC Saga: SGF Officials Deny Fake Agency Claims, Blame Directors

An internal disagreement between the promoter of the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office, George Nwabueze, and some directors within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) may have sparked the controversy over the status of the project.

According to reports by Saturday PUNCH, several OSGF officials who spoke anonymously claimed that the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) was misled into classifying the initiative as an unauthorised government agency.

The officials alleged that a dispute between Nwabueze and some directors eventually led to a petition to the anti-corruption commission, accusing him of operating a fake government office.

One of the officials stressed that the initiative was created as a project office and not as a statutory government agency.

The official said:

“It is not a fake agency. It is a project office. The ICPC was misled into believing it is a fake agency by some directors.

“There was a disagreement between him (Nwabueze) and some directors over some issues, which prompted the directors to petition the ICPC, alleging that someone was running a fake office.

“Instead of the ICPC doing due diligence, they saw it as an opportunity to declare that they had discovered another fake agency. That is far from it. It is a project office, not an agency. It can wind down anytime.”

Another official questioned how the project office could be classified as an agency when it had reportedly operated within the OSGF since 2010.

“How does a project office become an agency, and why has it been operating since 2010 in that office? ICPC didn’t discover anything; they were misinformed by some people at the SGF office who have scores to settle with the promoter of that office,” the official added.

The controversy followed an announcement by the ICPC that it had uncovered what it described as another fake government agency operating within the OSGF.

Speaking with State House correspondents after briefing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, ICPC Chairman, Dr Musa Aliyu (SAN), said the President had ordered Nwabueze’s arrest and prosecution, alongside the suspension of three permanent secretaries.

The suspended permanent secretaries are Ms Danjuma, Nandungu Gagare and Richard Pheelangwa.

However, a senior ICPC source later disclosed that no arrest had been made several days after the presidential directive and that Nwabueze was not in the commission’s custody.

“That’s all I can tell you,” the source said.

Meanwhile, Nwabueze has also rejected the description of the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office as an unauthorised government agency.

In a statement issued through his Directorate of Legal Affairs and Strategic Communications, Nwabueze alleged that some serving and retired OSGF officials had deliberately frustrated the project through administrative sabotage and the suppression of official documents.

He maintained that the initiative is a public-private special project operating under the OSGF and is not a separate government agency.

According to the statement, Nwabueze petitioned the Secretary to the Government of the Federation on May 15, 2026, over the alleged withholding of strategic project files, including documents relating to Nigeria’s advance delegation to the Asia-Africa Summit 2026 and sub-national energy programmes.

He also disclosed that he had filed Suit No. CV/2634/26 before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, over what he described as threats of administrative eviction and the suppression of official files.

Nwabueze said the lawsuit was intended to prevent any attempt to remove the project from the OSGF without following due administrative procedures.

“The entire subject matter remains subjudice before a court of competent jurisdiction,” he said.

He argued that the project was established under Executive Orders 003 and 005 of 2017 and 2018.

Nwabueze also cited correspondence referenced as PS-PEAO/2025/008/4 from the Political and Economic Affairs Office of the OSGF, which he said supported the project’s institutional status.

According to him, the correspondence approved the establishment of a five-member technical committee to oversee the project’s development objectives, monitoring framework and public-private implementation structures.

Efforts to obtain the ICPC’s response to the latest allegations were unsuccessful.

Similarly, the SGF’s spokesman, Christopher Ugwuegbulam, declined to comment on the allegations without receiving a formal request.

“If you want to get my reaction on the allegations, write to us,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Presidency on Friday said the ICPC had not concluded its investigation into how alleged fictitious government agencies were able to operate undetected within the SGF’s office.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, appealed to Nigerians to await the commission’s final recommendations before reaching conclusions about culpability.

Ajayi said President Tinubu expected the ICPC to complete its investigation and submit its recommendations.

“The ICPC has not finished their work. At the end of their investigation, they are supposed to make recommendations to the President and he is expecting them to.

“They have submitted their preliminary report; they are continuing with their work, and the President has asked them to make recommendations on how to strengthen the system where weaknesses have been spotted.

“The ICPC has said they have identified weaknesses in the system, so let’s wait for them to do their job.”