The immediate past Minister of Science and Technology, Mr. Uche Nnaji, was arrested on Wednesday at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, upon arrival from Enugu aboard a chartered flight.
Authoritative airport sources confirmed the development, stating that the former minister is expected to be handed over to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for interrogation.
Mr. Nnaji has been under investigation by the ICPC following allegations that he forged his academic certificates—an issue that led to his resignation from office last year.
In mid-June, a Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the ICPC to arrest the former minister as part of an ongoing probe into the certificate forgery scandal. The court also granted the commission permission to declare him wanted through national newspapers, social media platforms, and other media channels.
The ICPC informed the court that its ex parte application was necessitated by Mr. Nnaji’s repeated failure to honour invitations for “investigative activities” related to the allegations.
The investigation into the former minister’s credentials followed a two-year probe by Premium Times, published in October last year, which alleged that Mr. Nnaji forged his University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) degree and National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) certificates.
According to the report, the disputed documents were submitted to President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian Senate during his ministerial screening and confirmation in 2023. The same documents were also reportedly presented to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the State Security Service, and the Senate.
Subsequently, Mr. Nnaji admitted that the University of Nigeria, Nsukka did not issue him a degree certificate, an acknowledgment that appeared to corroborate the investigation’s findings.
