Reps Probe Uncovers 58 Bank Accounts, 12 Organisations Linked to PFIPC Controversy

By Sabiu Abdullahi

The House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) has released a preliminary report that links 12 organisations and 58 bank accounts to Adeniyi Adeyemi, who presented himself as the director-general of the council.

The committee, chaired by Yusuf Adamu Gagdi, presented its findings on Wednesday. The investigation followed public concerns over the appearance of the PFIPC in the 2026 Appropriation Bill despite questions about the legal status of the organisation.

According to the report, evidence obtained from witness testimonies, official documents, financial records and submissions from government institutions formed the basis of the panel’s preliminary conclusions.

The lawmakers said their investigation found no law enacted by the National Assembly or presidential directive that established the PFIPC.

The committee also stated that information obtained from the State House showed that President Bola Tinubu’s administration never appointed Adeyemi as director-general of the council.

In addition, the panel said it found no proof that Femi Gbajabiamila, Chief of Staff to the President, endorsed Adeyemi’s appointment letter.

“The Committee therefore preliminarily finds that the purported appointment letter was fabricated and falsely attributed to the Presidency,” the report reads.

“Such conduct, if established through the applicable criminal process, would constitute a grave assault on the integrity of the Office of the President and the official identity of the Federal Government.

“The unlawful creation or deployment of a document calculated to represent that the President or the Chief of Staff had authorised the appointment of a person to head a non-existent federal institution cannot be treated as a mere administrative irregularity.

“It is a matter deserving the most serious investigative and prosecutorial attention.”

The report identified several organisations allegedly connected to Adeyemi. They include the Confederation of United Nations Youths, FCT Investment Promotion Agency and Public-Private Partnership, FCT Investment Promotion Council and Public-Private Partnership, Foreign Investment Promotion Agency, United Nations Youth Global Agency and United Nations Youth Global Foundation.

Others listed by the committee are the World United Nations Youth Global Foundation, World Entrepreneurship University Limited, World Enterprise University Limited, FCT Investment Promotion Act, FCT Promotion Agency and the Olubadan of Ibadan Foundation.

Lawmakers also reported that about 58 bank accounts were traced to the organisations.

The committee further disclosed that investigators discovered a letter dated November 7, 2024, which was allegedly forged and presented as an official communication from the State House to the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF).

According to the report, the document sought the creation or issuance of an administrative code for the PFIPC. The letter was reportedly signed by one Akambi Adewale, a person the committee said does not appear in State House records.

The panel criticised both the OAGF and the Budget Office of the Federation over what it described as procedural failures in their handling of matters relating to the PFIPC.

The report stated that the OAGF acknowledged that its response to the forged correspondence should have been transmitted through an officially verified channel rather than released directly to Adeyemi.

“The office (OAGF) further acknowledged that the response ought not to have been released to Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi or any other unauthorised person but should have been transmitted through a properly authenticated official channel,” the report reads.

“The committee considers it a serious administrative and security lapse that official correspondence addressed to the State House could allegedly have been collected by a person connected with the forged originating request.

“The committee is therefore investigating whether the circumstances arose from negligence, failure to observe elementary verification requirements, breach of established correspondence procedures, wilful disregard of due process or deliberate facilitation.

“No officer will be condemned without fair hearing. Equally, no proven breach of public duty will be overlooked.

“The Budget Office made extensive submissions regarding its interaction with the purported organisation.

“While preliminary evidence indicates that the Office was presented with documentation purporting to establish the organisation as a federal institution, the Committee considers that verification of the legal existence of an institution is a fundamental prerequisite to its recognition within the Federal Budget Framework.”

The committee said further investigations are ongoing as it continues to examine the circumstances surrounding the PFIPC and the roles played by various individuals and government agencies in the matter.