President Bola Tinubu has ordered the immediate arrest of one George Buchi Nwabueze and the suspension of three permanent secretaries over the discovery of another fake agency operating within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

They include M.S. Danjuma, Nadungu Gagare, and Richard P. Pheelangwah.

Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, Dr Musa Aliyu, SAN disclosed this to State House correspondents on Friday after briefing the President for the second time in two days, following an earlier meeting on Thursday.

Aliyu said the newly uncovered fake office, operating under the name “National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office,” had been illegally allocated office space within the premises of the OSGF, contrary to extant laws and without presidential authorisation.

He said, “Upon further briefing by ICPC to Mr President on the ongoing investigations into the fake Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council and procedural weaknesses in the public service, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has uncovered another fake agency and office operating under the name National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office, which has been illegally allocated office space within the premises of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation,” Aliyu said.

He said the discovery emerged in the course of the commission’s broader investigation, as earlier directed by President Tinubu, and identified the promoter of the fake office as one Prince George Buchi Nwabueze, who was found to be operating under multiple aliases.

“The fake agency office, National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office, was promoted by one George Buchi Nwabueze, with active suspected collaborators in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, contrary to extant laws and without authorisation of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“The promoter was discovered to also operate under four other variations of his name: George Nathan, George Nathan Nwabueze, Honourable George Buchi Nwabueze, Prince George Buchi Nwabueze and George Nwabueze,” Aliyu said.

He revealed that the ICPC had engaged the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation to ascertain vital information relating to the fake office under investigation, and had comprehensively briefed the President on the new developments.

“I have briefed Mr President comprehensively on these new developments. ICPC will continue with its investigations accordingly,” he said.

Aliyu said following the discovery, “Mr President has directed as follows: the immediate arrest of Prince George Buchi Nwabueze; the immediate suspension of the following permanent secretaries; M.S. Danjuma, Nadungu Gagare, and Richard P. Pheelangwah,” he said.

Friday’s development is the latest in a scandal that began with the exposure of the fictitious Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, whose self-styled Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, is currently facing prosecution on charges of forgery and impersonation.

The ICPC’s interim report, submitted to the President on August 6 after a 30-day investigation, had earlier disclosed the existence of two other fictitious bodies, the FCT Investment Promotion Agency and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency and Public-Private Partnership.

The National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office is the fourth fake agency uncovered after the PFIFC scandal since early April.

Source: punchng.com

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has withdrawn the charges against a final-year student of Bayero University, Kano, Maryam Shehu, and another Nigerian, Abubakar Abdulhamad, who were arraigned for alleged cybercrime and peddling malicious information against the commission.

The two defendants were arraigned separately before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday.

The commission had accused Shehu of publishing a social media post on June 21 alleging that EFCC officials assaulted one Ahmed Uthman on the instruction of a zonal director who allegedly collected N20m from one Usman Abbas.

The EFCC said the publication was intended to tarnish its reputation and constituted an offence under Section 24(2)(c) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) Act, 2015, as amended in 2024.

Abdulhamad was also charged under the same provision over a separate allegation.

Both defendants pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to them.

However, the EFCC in a statement on Friday by its spokesman, Dele Oyewale, said the Executive Chairman of the commission, Ola Olukoyede, directed the withdrawal of the charges following appeals for leniency and an apology from Shehu’s father, as well as pleas from well-meaning Nigerians

Oyewale said although the commission considered the alleged cyberstalking to be contrary to the Cybercrimes Act, the chairman was moved by the appeals and apologies presented on behalf of the defendants.

The statement read, “ The Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede has compassionately ordered the withdrawal of charges preferred against Maryam Isah Shehu and Abubakar Shuraim Abdulhamad, who were, on Thurday August 21, 2026 arraigned before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court, Abuja , for alleged cybercrime and peddling malicious information against the Commission.

“While the Commission considered the arraignment of the two defendants for cyber stalking to be contrary to Section 24(2) (c) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc) Act, 2015 (As Amended) 2024 and punishable under Section 24 (2) (c) (ii) of the same Act, the Executive Chairman, nonetheless, considered the passionate pleas and apologies of Shehu’s father and appeals of well-meaning Nigerians for leniency.

“To this end, he has directed that charges filed against the two young Nigerians be dropped and warned that the EFCC would no longer tolerate any wilful attack on its image in any form, medium or platform.

“The EFCC’s boss assured Nigerians that the Commission would continue to function in line with its assigned mandate and in the best interests of the nation”.

Source: punchng.com

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The pan-Yoruba socio-political organization, Afenifere, on Friday, raised the alarm over the incessant attacks on and kidnapping of farmers and other innocent citizens in the region.

Afenifere, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Jare Ajayi, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, added that there were several such incidents in various parts of Yorubaland and elsewhere in Nigeria that are unreported.

The organisation revealed that during its recent visits to the Oke-Ogun Area and northern part of Oyo and Ondo States respectively, some people lamented that they have abandoned their farms for three major reasons.

It said, “First, one is fear of being kidnapped; second is the serious fall in prices that farmers could sell their proceeds as middlemen/middle-women (known as ‘Onibaranda’) are standing between them and direct purchasers, while the third reason is grazing on farmlands by unscrupulous herders that have not stopped despite several lamentations, warnings and steps taken.

“Among the recent instances were the killing of a female farmer in Ondo State, the abduction of a 33-year old poultry farmer, Ooreoluwa Osonuga, in Ikenne, Ogun State, killings of four farmers in Oke-Ogun Area of Oyo State, abduction of Debo Farounbi in Ora, Osun State.

“Abductors of the latter, Farounbi, who was kidnapped on June 9, 2026, have refused to release him despite the payment of N30 million, according to sources. They are even asking for more money and motorcycles!

“In June this year, the All Farmers Association of Nigeria disclosed that “persistent abductions of farmers, farm workers and agribusiness investors in Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti and Ondo states had discouraged investment, reduce, d agricultural productivity and endangered the livelihoods of thousands of farming familiesaccording to newspapers’ reports on June 9, 2026.

“Many farmers now abandon their farms due to fear of abduction, ransom demands and violent attacks,”

Afenifere explained that a prominent farmer in Ondo State, Eddy Olafeso, who owns 10 hectares of land, on which he produces cassava, cocoa, yam, plantain and other crops, lamented that he had abandoned his farmland mainly “because of insecurity.”

The group stressed that the President of Cowpea and Beans Farmers Association of Nigeria and Vice President of Federation of Agricultural Commodities Association, Shitu Kabir, stated that production of these commodities has dropped by almost 70 per cent at least in the north.

Afenifere added, “A former Chairman of Ondo State Agricultural Commodities Association, Olugbenga Obaweya, also harped on the risks that insecurity constitutes.

“To him, the difficulty in practicing farming safely not only puts food production at risk but also stands the chance of heightening unemployment as a lot of people who are engaged in agricultural-related businesses may be forced out of business.”

Afenifere asserted that the reports from various parts of Nigeria were painting a bleak picture for agricultural practices and risks of hunger in the coming months if insecurity is not quickly put in check.

It, therefore, lauded President Bola Tinubu on his latest directive that a comprehensive National Threat Assessment and a rolling five-year Strategic Defence Operations Plan be formulated within 90 days for the purpose of strengthening coordination across Nigeria’s defence, intelligence and security capabilities.

The organisation again commended the authorities and security agencies for the recent rescue of abducted students and teachers in Oyo and Borno States, and urged them to deploy the same sagacity to rescue those still in captivity and prevent a reoccurrence.

Among the multi-layered formulae given by Afenifere for resolving banditry in Nigeria were a combination of robust military action, tighter border control, strong community policing, a stoppage to the incentives that are driving kidnapping as well as the need for communities, security agencies and people in authority to work on their members who may be abetting bandits in one way or the other.

Other steps suggested to be worked upon are economic reforms to enhance the purchasing power of the people, reduction in high costs of items and services as well as ensuring that greater attention is paid to the seeming “ungoverned spaces” while stringent sanctions are brought much more quickly upon those caught in the act of banditry.

While calling on the authorities at every level to buckle up in this respect, Afenifere specifically called on governors in the six states in the South-West to work on the following:

Pending the establishment of State Police, strengthen Amotekun by, among others, increase its personnel, providing it with modern communication tools, operational vehicles and surveillance drones; enforce anti-open grazing laws; form specialized rangers’ units to clear and patrol thick forest reserves being used by criminals as hideouts; integrate local hunters and vigilante groups into information-sharing networks and encourage modern ranching.

The statement also suggested the setting up of joint security checkpoints along porous state borders to check incoming armed groups.

Source: punchng.com

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