The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has described the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office as a fictitious government office operating without presidential authorisation, a disclosure that has triggered a presidential arrest order and the suspension of three permanent secretaries.
Elaborate Structure Under Scrutiny
The organisation’s website presented it as a Federal Government project under the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF), with a national coordinator, zonal directors, state coordinators and representatives in the United States and China. It also claimed a mandate to promote Nigerian products, support small businesses, attract investment, and organise trade fairs and economic forums.
The website further lists 20 state coordinators across the country and representatives for the United States and China. The commission’s disclosure has raised questions about how an organisation that portrayed itself as part of the Federal Government could establish a nationwide network and engage with public institutions.
It has also prompted questions about how the organisation secured office space within the OSGF premises and how its activities became known to, and in some cases featured in communications from government institutions.
Presidential Action and Suspensions
PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that President Bola Tinubu ordered the immediate arrest of George Nwabueze, whom the ICPC identified as the promoter of the alleged fake office. The president also ordered the suspension of three permanent secretaries, including M.S. Danjuma, Nadungu Gagare, and Richard P. Pheelangwah, following the discovery.
The ICPC said the organisation had been allocated space within the OSGF premises without presidential authorisation. A review of the organisation’s website by PREMIUM TIMES shows how extensively it presented itself as a government-backed institution.
The website identifies the organisation as the “National Centre for Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Projects Office, Abuja” and says it is a strategic initiative of the OSGF. Its stated objectives include promoting locally made products, supporting small and medium-sized enterprises, attracting foreign direct investment, reducing import dependence, and contributing to economic diversification.
Website Claims and Leadership Structure
The website also gives an Abuja address within the OSGF complex and describes the project as operating under the Economic Affairs Office of the OSGF. Its leadership page names Nwabueze as “National Coordinator & Executive Director”. It also lists Dr Bassey B. Unaowo as “Special Assistant to the Permanent Secretary on Political and Economic Affairs, OSGF”; Dr Hajara Njidda Amoni as Director of National Administration; Oladunjoye Musiliua as Zonal Director, South-West; Hafsat Sahabi Dange as Zonal Director, North, and Ugochi Akudo Nwosu as Zonal Director, South-East.
The website further lists 20 state coordinators across the country, as well as representatives for the United States and China. That structure is significant because it went beyond merely appearing to be a project office in Abuja. It gave the organisation a presence that could make it appear, to an outsider, like an established government programme with officials operating across the federation.
The organisation’s website also claimed that the Made-in-Nigeria initiative was conceived in 2006, formalised under the leadership of Ambassador Chike Alex Anigbo and approved by the Federal Executive Council in 2017 before it was eventually “institutionalised” under the OSGF. The website also published what it described as a national framework, stating that the project would operate from 2025 to 2030 and that its national secretariat would be under the supervision of the Permanent Secretary responsible for Political and Economic Affairs in the OSGF.
Government Engagements and Relationships
The organisation’s footprint was not confined to its website. Public records show that government institutions engaged with individuals who presented themselves as representatives of the project. In June, the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation published an account of a delegation led by Nwabueze’s visit to the Abia State Government House in Umuahia.
The ministry’s report said the delegation met the state’s Deputy Governor, Ikechukwu Emetu, and other officials, including the Commissioner for Industry and SMEs. It said the discussions focused on promoting Made-in-Nigeria products, strengthening local industries and expanding opportunities for small and medium-sized businesses.
Abia State government records also show that its Ministry of Industry and SMEs described the National Brand Development and Made-in-Nigeria Project as a partner in preparations for Abia Expo 2026. The state ministry said the expo was intended to promote locally manufactured products, particularly those from Aba, and attract investors, sponsors, development partners, buyers and policymakers.
In Anambra, the state government’s website reported a strategic meeting among Nwabueze, the Secretary to the State Government; Chiamaka Nnake; and the Commissioner for Commerce and Economic Development. The report said the meeting concerned plans for the National Products Expo 2026, which the state is scheduled to host in December. It also quoted Nwabueze as saying that the national fair was a special project domiciled under the OSGF.
These records do not establish that the officials or institutions involved knew that the organisation allegedly lacked government authorisation. They do, however, show that the project had developed relationships with public institutions and was being discussed in government-facing settings before the ICPC’s disclosure.
Proposed Law and Broader Implications
Another document on the organisation’s website is titled “A Bill for an Act to Establish the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Promotion Commission and for Related Matters.” The document proposes the creation of a statutory commission responsible for promoting Nigerian goods and services, supporting local industries, facilitating investment and developing a national framework for Made-in-Nigeria products.
The document, however, is a proposed legislative framework. Its presence on the organisation’s website does not, by itself, establish that an Act of the National Assembly created the proposed commission. In contrast, the organisation’s website simultaneously presented the existing project office as an already established national programme under the OSGF.
The ICPC’s investigation into the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office followed its earlier probe into the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council and other fictitious government bodies. For businesses and citizens dealing with organisations claiming to represent the Federal Government, the implications are particularly significant.
The ICPC investigation will now have to establish how the alleged office obtained access to government premises, who authorised or facilitated its activities, whether public resources were used and whether individuals within government helped sustain its claimed status. For now, the commission has identified Nwabueze as the promoter, and President Tinubu has ordered his arrest, while the three permanent secretaries remain suspended pending further investigation.
