Nigeria: Ex-Minister Appeals Arrest Order Over Forgery Claims

Former Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology Uche Nnaji has filed an appeal against a court order mandating his arrest over allegations of certificate forgery. The order, issued by a federal high court in Abuja, also permitted the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to declare Nnaji wanted.

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We wish to state unequivocally that Chief Nnaji is not in hiding and has never evaded any law enforcement agency.

The ICPC had sought the arrest warrant after Nnaji reportedly failed to respond to multiple invitations for investigative activities. These invitations stemmed from a two-year investigation by PREMIUM TIMES, which alleged that the former minister forged his university and National Youth Service Corps certificates. He submitted these documents during his ministerial confirmation process in 2023.

Nnaji's appeal was lodged with the Court of Appeal in Abuja on June 18, just five days after he publicly denied the court order, dismissing the newspaper's report as a "media trial." His spokesperson stated that Nnaji had not received any summons or warrants from the ICPC and was not evading law enforcement. However, documents obtained by PREMIUM TIMES suggest otherwise, indicating repeated rebuffs of the anti-graft agency's invitations.

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We further wish to make it abundantly clear that neither Chief Uche Geoffrey Nnaji nor his legal team, led by Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, has received any invitation, summons, warrant, or correspondence whatsoever from the ICPC.

The former minister's grounds for appeal, filed through his legal team, express dissatisfaction with the federal high court's orders. The specifics of these grounds are detailed in the notice of appeal, which outlines his arguments against the arrest warrant and the declaration of him being wanted.

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No such (court) process has been served at his Abuja or Enugu residences, both of which have been publicly known for decades.