- The ICPC detected a fake government agency calling itself the National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office
- ICPC said the unlawful body had secured office space inside the premises of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation
- The commission described the outfit as illegal, raising fresh concerns about the infiltration of government buildings by fraudulent organisations
FCT, Abuja – The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Offences Commission (ICPC) has exposed a fake government agency that had allegedly been operating from inside one of Nigeria’s most sensitive federal buildings.
The ICPC has the mandate to investigate and prosecute corruption and fraud-related offences in Nigeria, including the establishment of illegal entities that seek to exploit the machinery of government.
As reported on Friday, August 21, by Channels TV, the commission identified the outfit as the National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office, describing it as an unlawful body with no legal basis to exist or function as a government agency.
Source: Facebook
ICPC exposes fake agency inside OSGF
According to the ICPC, the fraudulent organisation had gone beyond merely projecting a false identity; it had also managed to secure physical office space within the premises of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF), one of the most prominent arms of the Nigerian federal bureaucracy.
Per Vanguard, the commission described this as an illegal allocation of space, suggesting the outfit had positioned itself to appear credible by operating from within an official government compound.
The ICPC did not specify how long the fake agency had been active within the OSGF premises or how it gained access to the facility.
Before fresh discovery, reps targeted Adeyemi
Legit.ng recalls that the House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) and its N1.3 billion budgetary allocation recently disclosed that Adeniyi Matthew Adeyemi will be interrogated, but not at a public hearing.
The committee had asked Tunji Disu, the inspector-general of police (IGP), to produce Adeyemi, who described himself as the director-general (DG) of the purported PFIPC, for questioning. Adeyemi is accused by the ICPC of creating and operating a fictitious government agency, the PFIPC. However, Disu declined the committee’s request, saying Adeyemi is being held in custody on a court order. Adeyemi is currently in the custody of Nigerian authorities following his arrest in Osun state by police operatives.
The IGP said the force would not produce Adeyemi unless a warrant is obtained from a court of competent jurisdiction, ordering the police to comply with the request.
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Speaking at a public hearing in early August, Yusuf Gagdi, the chairman of the committee, said the panel was constrained by the court order.
Gagdi said the committee would instead interrogate Adeyemi at a time and place that would not be disclosed to the media to avoid undermining ongoing investigations by anti-graft agencies.
Atiku reacts as ICPC uncovers ‘fake’ agencies
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar rejected the interim report by the ICPC on the alleged fake PFIPC, saying it does not amount to a clean bill of health for the Presidency.
The opposition leader’s senior special assistant on public communication, Phrank Shaibu, issued the statement on Atiku’s behalf.
Atiku, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate for the 2027 general elections, argued that the report itself recorded evidence of negligence and connivance within government circles, which he said made it impossible to conclude that only one person was responsible for the alleged operation.
Source: Legit.ng