The Federal Government earlier partly blamed budget underperformance on conflicting macroeconomic projections by agencies responsible for fiscal and monetary policy, prompting the Economic Management Team to establish a committee to harmonise key assumptions used for budgeting and economic planning.

Following findings from a joint budget retreat and technical validation workshop, the government said differences in projections for crude oil prices and production, exchange rates, inflation and non-oil revenues had created inconsistencies in budget planning and contributed to actual fiscal outcomes falling short of expectations.

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said harmonising the assumptions should reduce discrepancies between budget expectations and actual economic outcomes.

Ahead of the September target, the Budget Office has fixed 4pm on Friday, September 18, 2026, as the deadline for MDAs to submit hard and soft copies of their 2027 personnel budget proposals and accompanying information.

The circular also introduced a new requirement compelling MDAs to submit the laws establishing them alongside their budget proposals, following the controversy over the inclusion of a fake agency in the 2026 budget.

The Budget Office said, “To further strengthen the budget preparation process and mitigate against any entry of unestablished agencies in the FGN Budget, it has become compulsory for MDAs to submit budget proposals along with their respective Establishment Acts as failure to do so, may lead to rejection.”

The directive follows the fake agency scandal involving the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, which was allocated about N1.3bn in the 2026 budget despite questions about its legal existence.

The House of Representatives launched an investigation into the matter and moved to verify agencies contained in recent federal budgets against the laws establishing them.

The controversy also prompted President Bola Tinubu to order a forensic investigation into government processes and internal controls surrounding the inclusion of questionable agencies in the budget.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission subsequently uncovered two additional fake government agencies linked to Adeniyi Adeyemi, the self-proclaimed Director-General of the PFIPC, as investigations into the alleged fraud deepened.

While briefing State House correspondents after presenting the commission’s interim investigation report to Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, ICPC Chairman, Dr Musa Aliyu, said investigators established that Adeyemi was never appointed by the Federal Government.

The commission also found that the PFIPC had no legal backing, having neither been established by an Act of the National Assembly nor an executive order.

According to the interim findings, the appointment letter used by Adeyemi was forged, while the fake PFIPC unlawfully took over the offices and official instruments previously used by the defunct Presidential Economic Advisory Council.

The ICPC recommended the prosecution of Adeyemi, disciplinary action against public officials alleged to have aided the operation of the fake agency, and reforms to strengthen internal controls across government institutions.

According to the report, officials from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, Budget Office of the Federation and National Information Technology Development Agency were identified as collaborators in the scheme.

Aliyu also said the commission uncovered the National Brands Development and Made-in-Nigeria Special Project Office operating within the OSGF.

He said the office had been illegally allocated space within the OSGF premises, contrary to extant laws and without presidential authorisation.

The ICPC identified George Buchi Nwabueze as its promoter and said he operated under several variations of his name, including George Nathan, George Nathan Nwabueze, Honourable George Buchi Nwabueze, Prince George Buchi Nwabueze and George Nwabueze.

The commission also said there were suspected collaborators within the OSGF.

Following the briefing, Tinubu ordered the immediate arrest of Nwabueze and the suspension of three permanent secretaries, M.S. Danjuma, Nadungu Gagare and Richard P. Pheelangwah.

Amnesty International earlier described the development as a reflection of weaknesses in Nigeria’s governance institutions and called for an independent panel of inquiry to establish what transpired.

Speaking with The PUNCH, the Country Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, said the controversy showed how deeply institutional weaknesses had affected governance in the country.

“The incident of the fake government agency is an indictment of the Nigerian government. It is a practical indication of the rampant corruption within and around government agencies. The fact that such a scam can happen is an indication of how weak government institutions are,” Sanusi said.

Beyond requiring MDAs to prove their legal existence, the Budget Office introduced tighter controls over personnel expenditure, recruitment and payroll management for the 2027 fiscal year.

It warned MDAs against making salary and allowance provisions for people who are not legitimate Federal Government employees.

“MDAs should note that payment of salaries and allowances are for legitimate employees of the FGN only. Any unauthorised payments from the personnel costs budget will attract appropriate sanctions,” the circular stated.

MDAs were consequently directed to validate their payrolls against information obtained from the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System and the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System.

The circular said no personnel cost provision would be made in the 2027 budget for any serving Federal Government employee who is not captured on IPPIS or enrolled on GIFMIS, unless specifically exempted by the appropriate authority.

MDAs must also use only salary structures and allowances approved by the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission and verify the grade levels and steps of their employees, including provisions for annual increments.

The government also barred MDAs from budgeting for anticipated promotions. Only promotions already approved and in effect are to be reflected in the 2027 personnel budget.

According to the circular, provisions for promotions taking effect during 2027 will instead be made centrally under the Payment for Promotion and Salary Arrears in the Service-Wide Vote.

It further directed MDAs to retain newly promoted officers on their budgeted grade levels and steps throughout the year once the personnel budget has been finalised, with promotions during 2027 to be reflected when preparing the 2028 personnel budget.

Similarly, the salary pay point of an officer transferred or posted after the conclusion of the 2027 personnel budget will remain with the MDA where the employee’s personnel cost was originally provided until the 2028 budget is prepared.

For new recruitment, MDAs must provide supporting documents, including financial clearance, letters of first appointment and relevant recruitment waivers or clearances.

The Budget Office warned that it would not entertain claims for salary shortfalls or payroll lock-outs resulting from unauthorised recruitment.

Consultants, contract staff, youth corps members, industrial attaches, outsourced service providers and legionnaires are also prohibited from being included in MDA nominal rolls because they are not permanent or pensionable Federal Government employees.

Non-executive board members are similarly excluded, with their allowances and fees to be provided under the overhead costs of the respective MDAs.

Allowances for youth corps members will be provided centrally under the budget of the National Youth Service Corps, while MDAs may only pay additional allowances to corps members from their overhead provisions.

Additional controls were introduced for the health and education sectors, particularly over outsourced workers, interns and consultants.

“The staff of outsourced service providers must not be included in the nominal roll. Inclusion of staff of outsourced service providers in MDAs payroll will henceforth be regarded as willful fraudulent action, and shall be reported to relevant authorities accordingly,” the circular warned.

The Budget Office also prohibited the multiple capture of the same consultant or lecturer on the nominal rolls of different federal health and educational institutions.

Where duplication is discovered, the individual will be removed from the payrolls of institutions other than the person’s primary place of employment.

Federal health institutions were instructed to comply with approved ceilings and quotas for interns and honorary consultants, while registration or lisence numbers of interns must be provided for authentication before they can be admitted into the budget.

The recruitment, deployment, administration and budgetary provisions for house officers and nursing interns will also be handled centrally by the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria and the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, respectively.

Hospitals that directly recruit or post house officers and nursing interns without recourse to the councils will be liable for unauthorised recruitment, with sanctions to be applied to the chief medical director or medical director.

The circular also introduced measures to improve personnel expenditure monitoring.

The Budget Office said it would deploy a centralised Personnel Cost Monitoring Dashboard linked to IPPIS and GIFMIS, enabling MDAs to compare actual expenditure with budget provisions in real time.

Requests for salary and promotion arrears will be processed quarterly by a standing committee domiciled in the Budget Office, while a Payroll Discrepancy Resolution Committee will meet monthly to address differences between information submitted by MDAs and records on IPPIS and GIFMIS.

MDAs were also directed to constitute joint human resources and budget personnel cost teams to improve coordination between staffing decisions and budget submissions.

The circular requires all MDAs to submit their third-quarter personnel budget performance review reports by September 30, 2026, to guide future personnel planning.

It also instructed them to make provisions for nutrition-related projects and programmes as well as Early Childhood Development programmes, while monitoring actual personnel costs throughout the implementation of the 2027 budget and reporting discrepancies to the Budget Office.

Ministers or chief executives and accounting officers are also required to initial every page of the hard copies of their 2027 personnel budget proposals and additional information templates and certify the accuracy of the information submitted.

Their reported abduction has caused anxiety among their families, friends and members of the university community.

While a source within the university said the two students had been released, another source maintained that they remained in captivity.

Meanwhile, the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), in a statement, welcomed the safe release of the abducted female students, commending the security agencies and others whose efforts contributed to their rescue.

Describing their safe return as a relief to their families, fellow students and the university community, the group urged authorities not to allow the students’ release to overshadow the recurring security threats around FUTO, calling for sustained and coordinated measures to prevent further kidnappings and violent attacks.

RULAAC’s statement coincides with reports that the abductors demanded N100 million as ransom for their release, although the claim could not be independently verified.

Brother mourns

Obinna Collins Onuoha, who described himself as the deceased’s only blood brother, expressed shock and grief over his death.

In a Facebook post, he said his brother was killed while taking his children back to FUTO.

“My only blood brother is gone!!!! Shot and killed while taking his children back to FUTO. Who did this to us? Killed before his sons!! Cha, what a wicked world. Your killers will never go free! Rest in peace, my blood,” he wrote.

ASUU raises alarm over perimeter fencing

The Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), FUTO branch, Dr Chinedu Ihejirika, attributed part of the security challenges facing the university to the absence of a complete perimeter fence around the institution.

Ihejirika said the problem had persisted for years, noting that successive vice-chancellors had raised concerns about the need to properly secure the university’s boundaries.

“The security challenges we have is that FUTO is not walled off and this has given rise to insecurity. But it did not start today. Many vice-chancellors of the university had called for the perimeter fencing of the institution,” he said.

He recalled that during the tenure of either Prof. Asiabaka or Prof. Francis Eze, portions of the university were fenced as part of efforts to improve security.

He alleged, however, that some hoodlums later pulled down sections of the fence and carted away materials belonging to the university.

According to him, securing FUTO should not be left to the university authorities alone, as it requires collaboration among security agencies, traditional institutions, residents and other stakeholders.

“The issue of security is not FUTO alone; it is a joint effort of the security agencies, traditional institutions, residents and other individuals,” he said.

Ihejirika also commended the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ikechukwu Dozie, for engaging security agencies over the security situation.

He said Dozie had visited relevant security formations and sought stronger collaboration to address insecurity around the university.

FUTO seeks police intervention

Following the attack, the university management approached the Imo State Police Command for urgent assistance.

The Vice-Chancellor led a delegation of the university management to the Commissioner of Police, Audu Garba Bosso, where they raised concerns over the safety of students and other members of the university community.

The delegation also sought police assistance in securing the safe recovery of the abducted students.

The commissioner reportedly assured the university management of the command’s commitment to securing the institution and working towards the safe recovery of the students.

He also said security operatives were making efforts to track the perpetrators and bring them to justice.

Ihejirika also linked the security concerns to the poor condition of roads around the university, particularly routes leading to the area where the latest incident occurred.

“Our roads are completely damaged. From Obinze Junction to FUTO is damaged, likewise the Back Gate or East Gate where the incident happened,” he said.

He appealed to the Imo State Government, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and FUTO alumni to collaborate on the rehabilitation of the roads.

“We need NDDC, government and alumni to come together to rehabilitate the roads to secure lives and property,” he said.

He also expressed concern over thick bushes surrounding parts of the university, saying they could provide hiding places for criminals and increase the vulnerability of students and residents.

Residents demand urgent action

Residents living around FUTO have also called for urgent measures to address the security situation in the area.

They expressed concern about the vulnerability of students and residents who use poorly maintained roads and routes bordered by overgrown vegetation.

The residents called on the state and federal governments, security agencies and other relevant authorities to strengthen security around the university and neighbouring communities.

They urged the authorities to clear overgrown bushes, rehabilitate access roads, increase security patrols and complete the perimeter fencing of the institution.

According to them, securing FUTO is not only about protecting students and staff but also the thousands of residents who live and operate businesses around the university.

They warned that continued neglect of the security vulnerabilities around the institution could expose more students and residents to kidnappers and other criminal elements.

The latest incident has heightened calls for intensified security operations around FUTO as families and members of the university community await clarity on the whereabouts of the two students and efforts to secure their safe release.

He called on the South African Police Service (SAPS) and other relevant authorities to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation to establish the circumstances surrounding the killing.

“We demand a thorough and credible investigation that will establish exactly what happened, identify all those responsible, apprehend the perpetrators and ensure that they are brought before the courts to face the full might of the law,” he said.

NICASA also urged Nigerian diplomatic authorities in South Africa to continue engaging with relevant South African authorities and monitor the progress of the investigation until justice is served.