A civil Society group under the aegis of Mission for Peace and Development Initiative(MPDI) has petitioned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission(ICPC), the National Assembly and the Department of State Service (DSS) to immediately suspend, probe and direct the investigation of the Director General/ Comptroller General of the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), Dr Vincent Isegbe for allegedly manipulating the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS).
The petitions which were sighted by our reporter for both the ICPC and the National Assembly were dated April 8, 2026 and April 16, 2026 respectively and signed by the Director of Programmes of the group, Mr Joshua Agbaji.
Dr. Vincent Ikape Isegbe is alleged to have doctored the NAQS establishment Act 2018 at three (3) different times for the purpose of tenure elongation which will span for 14 years.
The NAQS boss is also alleged to have succeeded in doctoring and forging of the NAQS Establishment Act 2018, especially the pages that concern the appointment of the Director General.
According to the group, Dr Isegbe used the manipulated Act to coerce, confuse and deceive the Minister of Agriculture and food security, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and Chief of staff to Mr. president (COS) so as to be recommended for the re- appointment to Mr. President for Approval, which he eventually succeeded.
Dr. Isegbe came to the helm of affairs in the agency as the Coordinating Director, with full financial autonomy since 2014 and still remains till date as the Director General /Comptroller General of NAQS even after retirement from civil service at the age of sixty (60) years in 2021, since he was born on the 26th March, 1961 but was appointed as the DG in 2018.
According to the group, the development was the beginning of the 1st manipulation of the NAQS Act. 2018, from five (5) years single term only according to the executive bill endorsed by the National Assembly (NASS) and without amendment by NASS added renewal for another five years.
The group noted that Dr Isegbe did this as if there were no other capable hands in the agency or outside the Service with Quarantine experience as indicated in the establishment Act 2018.
The group believes that the Bill was corruptly altered after passage by NASS whilst in transit to the president for assent or in circumstances
that look as if signatures of the Clerk of NASS and the President of the now
displayed NAQS Act were forged.
It posited that the Nigeria Agricultural Quarantine Service (Establishment) Executive Bill, 2010
was first passed by the National Assembly in 2010 and forwarded to the President for assent. This was during the former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s regime.
It was then passed but not assented to due to lack of adequate time before exiting office.
The Executive Bill was drafted in line with Public Service Rules of the Federation, particularly, Chapter 2, Section 9, Regulation 020908 (i) & (ii)and Regulation 020909 of the Public Service Rules of the Federation,2021edition, which stipulates that the total tenure of the Director General of an MDA of Federal Republic Service or its equivalent by whatever nomenclature it is called shall not exceed the total renewable period of eight (8) years in line with Public Service Rules of the Federation.
The bill clearly indicated in Part Ill 8(4) (a), “the Director General shall hold office for a term of Five (5) years only”.
This bill was forwarded to the National Assembly (NASS) in order to establish
NAQS as an agency of Government after the three core units of the departments in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (now Food Security) were harmonized. The units were:
a) Plant Quarantine Service of Department of Agriculture
b) Animal Quarantine Service of Federal Livestock Department/Pest Control Services and
c) Aquatic Resources Quarantine of Department of Fisheries
The bill was then represented by the harmonized agency (NAQS) to NASS of the
8th Assembly. It was passed again in 2013 and its passage for presidential assent was published in the National Assembly Journal No. 25 Vol. 10 25th December, 2013. It was forwarded for former President Muhammadu Buhari to assent.
During this time, the bill did not go through the rigours of passing a new bill; hence we believe that corruptly, Dr. Vincent lkape Isegbe
(as he is the main beneficiary) and other unknown persons with intention to extend
his tenure knowing that he was the most senior Director at that agency, altered the
provisions of the executive bill after NASS had done its job before forwarding it to Mr. President for Assent.
According to the group the following documents were displayed on the agency’s website since 2018 stating differently what the Executive bill was passed by the National Assembly especially on the issue of the tenure of the Director General.
“We noted that the provisions kept being changed to suit the tenure elongation gambit of Dr. Isegbe”.
