ABUJA, Nigeria — President Bola Tinubu has ordered an investigation into an alleged unauthorized government office operating under the appearance of federal authority, deepening concerns about oversight within Nigeria’s bureaucracy. The case centers on the National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office, which investigators say operated from within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, or OSGF, despite questions over its official authorization.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, or ICPC, said the office was uncovered during an investigation into suspected fictitious government bodies. ICPC Chairman Musa Adamu Aliyu said he briefed Tinubu on the findings, after which the president ordered action against George Buchi Nwabueze, identified as the project’s coordinator, and the suspension of three permanent secretaries pending further investigation.
“I have briefed Mr President comprehensively on these new developments,” Aliyu said. “ICPC will continue with its investigations accordingly.” The case has attracted particular attention because the project reportedly had access to office space within the OSGF complex, giving it an appearance of official legitimacy and raising questions about how such access was obtained.
Nwabueze has disputed the description of the operation as a fake government agency. He maintains that the Made in Nigeria initiative is a “special project” rather than an agency and says it predates the Tinubu administration. “It has been existing since 2010. It’s a special project. Made-in-Nigeria is never an agency,” he told The Punch.
Nwabueze has released documents he says support his position, including a purported appointment letter dated Oct. 3, 2025, bearing OSGF letterhead and naming him national coordinator and executive director of the Made in Nigeria Project Office. He has also cited correspondence dating to 2010 involving an earlier “Made in Naija” initiative. The existence of those documents does not by itself resolve whether the current project had legal authority to operate under the federal government, an issue investigators are expected to examine.
Reports indicate that the project’s activities extended beyond Abuja. The office reportedly contacted several state governments, including Lagos, Imo, Ondo, Sokoto, Edo and Nasarawa, seeking cooperation on various initiatives. Some correspondence sought state coordinators, financial support and land, while other communications promoted participation in trade exhibitions and international events.
The investigation follows another recent controversy involving the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, an allegedly fictitious federal body that Tinubu directed the ICPC to investigate in July. Authorities said that inquiry would examine suspected false government documents, bank accounts, movement of funds and whether public officials or other intermediaries helped facilitate the organization’s activities.
Nigeria has long faced fraud involving people who use official titles, forged documents or claimed connections to senior government officials to gain credibility. The latest cases, however, have generated wider concern because of allegations that questionable initiatives were able to establish links with government institutions and present themselves to businesses, state governments and other organizations as officially backed.
The controversy also comes as the Tinubu administration promotes its “Nigeria First” policy, aimed at encouraging domestic production and greater use of Nigerian goods and services. The disputed Made in Nigeria project promoted similar objectives, but those goals are not themselves under investigation. The central issue is whether the project had proper authority to operate while presenting itself as connected to the federal government. No finding of criminal wrongdoing has been made against the suspended officials, and the investigation remains ongoing.
Investigators are now expected to determine who authorized the project, how it obtained access to government premises, whether officials facilitated its activities and whether public or private funds changed hands. Beyond the individuals involved, the case could test the safeguards Nigeria uses to verify government initiatives and protect citizens, businesses and international partners from organizations that may improperly present themselves as having federal authority.
