Nigerian Technology Minister Demanded N500Million From Agencies To Secure 2025 Budget Approval –Sources

Chief Uche Geoffrey Nnaji, the Nigerian Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology, in collaboration with Dr. Mustapha Abdullahi, Director General/CEO of the Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN), coerced heads of agencies under the ministry to collectively contribute ₦500 Million, sources have told SaharaReporters.

According to sources close to the agencies, they exerted pressure on the heads of various agencies operating under the ministry. 

The nature of this pressure involves compelling these agency heads to pool together a substantial sum of money, specifically amounting to N500 million, as part of a collective contribution. 

These funds were purportedly intended to bribe the National Assembly for the passage of the 2025 budget.

The agencies under the ministry include National Board for Technology Incubation (NBTI); Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN); Nigerian Institute of Science Laboratory Technology (NISLT); National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA); National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM); National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP); Nigerian Natural Medicine Development Agency (NNMDA); National Space Research & Development Agency (NARSDA); Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), Abuja; National Research Institute for Chemical Technology (NARICT), Zaria; Sheda Science and Technology Complex (SHESTCO), Abuja; Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO) and National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Abuja.

Sources told SaharaReporters that the goal was to amass a substantial sum of funds with the intention of influencing the National Assembly's decision on the passage of the 2025 budget. 

On January 14, 2025, the minister disclosed that he had just presented the ministry’s budget.

“I led the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science, and Technology's @FmstNg 2025 budget defence at the National Assembly, accompanied by the Permanent Secretary, Mrs Esuabana Nko Asanye, Ministry Directors, and DGs/CEOs of agencies under the supervision of the ministry,” he wrote on his X account.

“The presentation highlighted the progress achieved and reaffirmed our dedication to driving impactful projects and fostering innovation-driven nation-building. 

“We are aligning our priorities to accelerate ongoing projects, expand innovation, and advance progress in science and technology. 

“This engagement with the legislature underscores our unwavering commitment to delivering meaningful results to our nation and its citizens.”

According to sources, each agency was reportedly directed to contribute a sizable amount running into millions of naira, with Dr. Abdullahi allegedly overseeing the collection process. 

“Each agency was required to cough up millions of naira for the scheme,” a source said.

Furthermore, it was learnt that Dr. Abdullahi assumed a supervisory role over other agency heads, purportedly exerting pressure on those who failed to comply with his directives. 

These allegations raise concerns about potential improprieties in the budget passage process.

According to sources, the situation garnered significant attention when Senator Aminu Iya Abbas, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Science and Technology and former high-ranking official of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), posed probing questions to Nnaji and Abdullahi regarding the intended use of the amassed funds. 

Senator Abbas reportedly alerted his fellow senators to alleged bribery attempts totalling N500 million, with N300 million allegedly intended for the Senate Committee and N200 million for the House Committee, purportedly orchestrated by Chief Nnaji and Dr. Abdullahi.

“Senator Aminu Iya Abbas, the Senate Committee Chairman on Science and Technology questioned both Chief Nnaji and Dr. Abdullahi regarding the purpose of the amassed funds, and this drew attention to the situation,” a source said.

Efforts made by SaharaReporters to get the reaction of the minister to these allegations were unsuccessful. 

His special assistant, Isime Esene, did not answer subsequent calls to his line after the initial conversation was cut off by a network issue. He has also not responded to WhatsApp and text messages requesting his comment on our findings.

In January, PREMIUM TIMES reported that certain lawmakers in the National Assembly had orchestrated a bribery scheme targeting federal universities and other tertiary institutions across the country.

According to the report, these lawmakers are employing intimidation and threats to coerce university heads into paying N8 million each to secure approval for their allocations in the 2025 budgets.

The newspaper's investigation revealed that the extortion scheme involves senators and members of the House of Representatives. 

According to the report, the lawmakers, operating through the Senate Committee on Tertiary Education and TETFund, as well as the House Committee on University Education, are demanding payments from universities in order to approve their budgets.

Using a sophisticated and complex system created by the lawmakers, 60 federal university vice-chancellors are being required to pay N8 million each (N4 million to the Senate and House Committees respectively)

The report said the lawmakers were set to extort N480 million and had appointed two vice-chancellors from the North-Central and North-West geopolitical zones to oversee the payments discreetly and evade detection.

President Bola Tinubu presented the federal budget to a joint session of the National Assembly in December 2024. The National Assembly committees have been conducting budget defence sessions, where various ministries, departments, and agencies are required to justify their proposed allocations. 

During these sessions, the agencies provide an overview of their spending plans and revenue projections, allowing lawmakers to scrutinise their proposals. Unfortunately, the budget process has been marred by persistent allegations of bribery and the insertion of unauthorized projects over the years.

Rep. Abubakar Fulata (APC-Jigawa), Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on University Education, has refuted the allegations.

In a recent address to the press in Abuja, Fulata described the allegations as attempts to discredit the committee's efforts to enhance the country's education standards. He emphasised that his response to the allegations aimed to prevent the public from being misled about the committee's and the 10th House of Representatives' activities.

Fulata called the notion of lawmakers demanding any sum of money as a precondition for budget approval "ridiculous."

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