‘Fake Agency’ Boss Fights Back With Appointment Letter, Says Made-in-Nigeria Project Is 16 Years Old

The controversy surrounding the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office has taken another turn after its National Coordinator and Executive Director, George Nwabueze, rejected allegations that he is running a fake government agency.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) recently identified the office as one of the organisations uncovered during its investigation into an alleged fictitious government body. The commission said the office was operating from premises within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) without presidential authorisation.

Nwabueze, however, has pushed back strongly against the allegation, insisting that the Made-in-Nigeria initiative has existed for about 16 years and should not be described as a fake agency.

In an effort to defend the legitimacy of his position, Nwabueze shared an appointment letter dated October 3, 2025, which he said was issued by the OSGF. According to the document, Nwabueze was appointed as the National Coordinator/Executive Director of the Made-in-Nigeria Project Office for a five-year tenure beginning in July 2025, with the possibility of renewal.

The letter was reportedly signed by Nadungu Gagare, then Permanent Secretary of the Political and Economic Affairs Office of the OSGF. The document also stated that the project office was to operate temporarily from a designated room within the OSGF complex in Abuja.

For Nwabueze, the appointment letter challenges the suggestion that he simply created an unauthorised government organisation. “Made in Nigeria Special Project Office is a project office in the OSGF. We don’t know where fake agency comes from,” he said, according to reports.

Nwabueze has also pointed to a July 2010 letter from the OSGF as evidence that the broader Made-in-Nigeria initiative predates the current administration by more than a decade.

He said the project dates back to June 2010 and questioned how a programme he claims has existed for 16 years could suddenly be described as a fictitious government structure.

The 2010 document reportedly referenced a “Made in Naija” project and an event planned in Ireland. Premium Times noted that it could not independently verify the authenticity of the document or establish the current status of the initiative from it.

The ICPC’s position remains that the organisation was among structures uncovered during its investigation into the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council.

The commission said the Made-in-Nigeria office had been allocated space within the OSGF without presidential authorisation and alleged that some senior public servants were involved in its activities. Authorities have also ordered an investigation, while three senior officials have reportedly been suspended.

The ICPC says the organisation lacked proper government authorisation, while Nwabueze is presenting documents he says show that the project was recognised and that his appointment came through the OSGF.

Until the relevant government authorities clarify the matter, questions remain over how the project was established, who authorised its operations, and whether it had the legal status to function within government premises.

For now, Nwabueze is fighting back with paperwork—and insisting that the Made-in-Nigeria project is not a fake agency, but a long-running government-linked initiative that has simply come under scrutiny.