ICPC secures Court order to detain ex-Minister Uche Nnaji over alleged certificate forgery

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has obtained a court order permitting it to detain former Minister of Science and Technology, Uche Nnaji, for an initial 14 days over an alleged certificate forgery case.

A source within the commission told Premium Times that the remand order would enable investigators to interrogate the former minister, with the option of seeking an extension if necessary.

Nnaji was arrested on Wednesday at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, shortly after arriving from Enugu aboard a chartered flight.

He was subsequently taken into the custody of the ICPC.

The commission confirmed the arrest in a statement issued by its spokesperson, John Odey.

According to the statement, Nnaji was apprehended with the assistance of operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) before being handed over to the ICPC for further investigation.

> “He was apprehended with the assistance of the State Security Services and subsequently handed over to the ICPC for further investigation,” the statement read.

> “The commission assures the public that the matter will be pursued diligently in accordance with the law.”

The ICPC said the arrest followed an order of the Federal High Court after the former minister allegedly failed to honour several invitations extended to him by the commission.

Nnaji is being investigated over allegations that he forged a degree certificate purportedly issued by the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), as well as a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) discharge certificate.

The documents were reportedly submitted to President Bola Tinubu and the Senate during his ministerial screening in 2023.

The former minister has consistently denied the allegations.

Reports, however, claimed that UNN confirmed Nnaji was admitted to the institution in 1981 but did not graduate and was never issued a degree certificate.

The NYSC was also said to have disowned the discharge certificate allegedly presented by him.

Nnaji resigned from his position as minister shortly after the allegations became public.

Before serving as minister, he contested the 2023 Enugu State governorship election on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

He was later reported to have defected to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), where he emerged as the governorship candidate of a faction of the party ahead of the 2027 election.