•Want Gbajabiamila to step aside pending investigation
•Staff of disowned agency speak about Adeyemi, operations
By Omeiza Ajayi
More Nigerians yesterday expressed outrage over the scandal rocking the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, PFIPC which the presidency claimed was fake but was allocated N24b in the 2026 national budget.
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Among those who reacted and demanded an immediate investigation into the scandal are human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, Civil rights group Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and others. They also want the Chief of Staff to the President, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila to step aside pending the investigation.
Trouble started on June 11, 2026 when the Office of the Chief of Staff disowned one Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi for allegedly presenting himself as Director General of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, PFIPC and Presidential Economic Advisory Council, PEAC which the presidency said did not exist. Gbajabiamila said he petitioned security agencies in October 2025 after forged appointment letters surfaced and Adeyemi was later charged before the Federal High Court for forgery, impersonation and obtaining by false pretence.
Adeyemi, however, denied all the allegations against him saying he was ready to clear his name in court. He also demanded an independent panel from the president claiming that his accusers were trying to silence him. He had earlier said on television that Gbajabiamila gave him appointment letter and that the court would determine if he was a criminal or not.
Nigeria exposed to unprecedented ridicule — Falana
In his reaction, Mr Femi Falana, SAN, said the Presidency’s explanation on the matter has left Nigeria “exposed to unprecedented ridicule” Speaking yesterday on Eagle 102.5 FM, Falana queried: “How did an agency that is not created by law find its way into the Appropriation Act of Nigeria? How did that body get an office in the Federal Secretariat? How did that body successfully open accounts in the Central Bank of Nigeria? How did the Head of Service post about 300 staff to that office? The government will have to explain to Nigerians how a sum of N24 billion was budgeted for an unknown agency, as well as how that agency had accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria,” he said. He insisted the issue is bigger than the man on trial: “If this is a conman that can con the Presidency into issuing a letter of appointment, con the Central Bank into opening accounts, con the National Assembly into inserting the agency into the budget, I think the government is kidding.”
Falana said the National Assembly must explain how an “agency unknown to law” was inserted into the budget. Citing Section 81 of the Constitution, he noted that appropriation bills originate from the Executive. “You cannot have an agency that is not created by law in the budget of a country” he said, adding that the Presidency’s statement left “gaping holes.”
Falana also called for an independent investigation into the alleged role of Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila. “The government has a duty to ask Mr. Gbajabiamila to step aside to allow for a full investigation in the interest of the country and even in his own interest,” Falana said.
Atiku gives Tinubu 7 days to prove or risk complicity charge
On his part, the Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress ADC, Atiku Abubakar, has given President Bola Tinubu a seven-day ultimatum to order a transparent, comprehensive and independent investigation into the scandal rocking the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council PFIPC, warning that failure to do so would deepen public suspicion that powerful interests in government benefited from the alleged fraud.
Speaking through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, the former vice president said the controversy had moved beyond ordinary forgery allegations into a full-blown crisis of institutional credibility, and that many Nigerians seeking public sector appointments may have been duped through a racket that enjoyed official protection.
Demographics
Atiku said “If the government wants Nigerians to believe that one man single-handedly created an office for himself, secured office space within a government facility, held meetings with foreign embassy delegations, paid courtesy visits to the EFCC, processed staff salaries through official channels, allegedly operated institutional accounts, and carried on all these activities without the knowledge, approval, negligence or collaboration of anyone within government, then that narrative raises even more troubling questions than it answers”.
Atiku argued that the accused’s antecedents could not explain away the institutional processes he reportedly navigated, asking whether it was his character that secured budgetary allocations for a supposedly fictitious office, or his antecedents that got him office space within a government facility, or his dubious nature that enabled him to hold meetings with foreign delegations, legislators and public officials. “At some point, we must separate an individual’s alleged conduct from the institutional systems that either enabled it or failed to detect it,” he said.
He noted that public records had reportedly shown the PFIPC captured in the 2026 Appropriation Act with a budgetary allocation running into billions of naira, and that fresh reports indicating the Office of the Head of the Civil Service had allegedly approved the recruitment of over 300 personnel into the agency had changed the nature of the scandal. “Nigeria deserves the truth. Quietly investigating the matter and addressing the lapses would have been better than publicly presenting a story that collapses under its own contradictions. The President must order a comprehensive, independent investigation immediately. Anything short of that will amount to complicity by silence,” he said.
ADC names 10 officials, agencies for probe
In its own reaction, the African Democratic Congress, ADC, named ten Federal Government officials, offices and institutions it wants investigated over the scandal. The opposition party said the controversy had raised grave questions about institutional integrity, governance, accountability and national security under the administration of President Bola Ahmed.
In a statement issued yesterday, and signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC said the Presidency’s explanation on the matter had failed to answer the most important questions arising from the scandal.
The party said it had studied the July 1 statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, but insisted that the statement left more questions than answers. According to the ADC, the Presidency, by its own account, described PFIPC as a fictitious organisation, yet the same body allegedly operated across multiple arms of the Federal Government, interfaced with ministries, corresponded with public institutions, engaged foreign diplomats and obtained official recognition from different quarters.
The party said the matter had gone beyond one individual allegedly parading himself as head of a fake agency, insisting that the scandal now touched “the heart of the security and integrity of the Nigerian state.”The ADC therefore called for the immediate establishment of an independent Judicial Panel of Inquiry to investigate what it described as a major scandal.
Among those named for investigation is the Chief of Staff to the President, Rt Hon Femi Gbajabiamila. The ADC said he should be probed to determine how documents allegedly bearing the authority of his office were issued, as well as publicly reported claims of bribe payments ranging from N200 million to N600 million allegedly made by Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi.
The party also named Adeyemi himself, saying investigators must establish the full extent of his role in the creation, operation and promotion of PFIPC, verify the authenticity of documents and approvals he relied upon, investigate his claims of payments to senior government officials and determine whether he acted alone or as part of a wider network.
Also listed is the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, whose office the ADC said should explain whether any approvals, recognitions or official records existed in relation to PFIPC. The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, was also named. The party said she should clarify whether approval was granted for a recruitment waiver for over 300 civil servants into an organisation the Presidency now says never existed.
The Director General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Mr Tanimu Yakubu, was also listed for probe. The ADC said the Budget Office must explain how PFIPC reportedly appeared in the 2026 Appropriation Act with a budget allegedly running into billions of naira.
The party further named the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, saying it should explain the extent of PFIPC’s engagements with foreign diplomats and whether established diplomatic protocols were subverted or bypassed. The Office of the National Security Adviser was also listed, with the ADC saying the NSA’s office should explain how the alleged activities were possible and why they were not flagged earlier.
The Department of State Services, DSS, and the Nigeria Police Force were also named to explain the timeline of their investigations and whether earlier intervention could have prevented the alleged activities.
The ADC also demanded that the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Central Bank of Nigeria be investigated to determine how public funds could allegedly be drawn or expended by a fictitious organisation using allegedly forged documents. The party finally listed relevant oversight committees of the National Assembly, including the Senate and House Appropriations Committees, the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, and the House Committee on Treaties, Protocols and Agreements. It said the committees should explain the basis upon which official correspondence and invitations were reportedly extended to PFIPC. “This matter must not be swept under the Presidential red carpet,” the ADC said.
The party said if PFIPC was indeed fictitious, Nigerians deserved to know how it allegedly secured recruitment approvals, budgetary allocations, official correspondence, diplomatic engagements and recognition across multiple arms of government. It added that if, contrary to the Presidency’s position, PFIPC was not fictitious, Nigerians also deserved to know why the government had publicly disowned a legitimate agency. The ADC insisted that only a transparent, public and independent inquiry could establish the truth, identify those responsible and restore confidence in public institutions.
The NDC finds it deeply troubling
The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) said it was alarmed by the scandal which according to it raises fundamental questions about the level of transparency, accountability, and the integrity of the Tinubu administration. The party in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director, said it found it “troubling that an agency the Presidency claims does not exist could open multiple high-level financial accounts at the apex bank. For even an individual to open a domiciliary account, stringent documentation is required. How then was a fictitious agency able to open such accounts without the necessary documentation?”
According to the party, “This development is baffling, given that the Presidency has publicly disclaimed the existence of any such agency. Did the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation knowingly process forged documents? The Presidency owes Nigerians an urgent clarification on this matter.
“Equally disturbing is the claim that the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation approved 314 staff positions for this supposedly non-existent agency. The NDC wonders how such a significant administrative action could occur without the knowledge of the Presidency and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
“Is the Tinubu administration so clueless and incompetent that major decisions bypass its principal officers? More grievous is the allegation that the Chief of Staff demanded 48% of the agency’s take-off grant amounting to N27,395,510,136, a request Prince Adeyemi reportedly rejected which invariably resulted in a public spat. Adeyemi further admitted that he fraudulently secured his appointment through the Chief of Staff for the sum of N 600 million, with N400 million allegedly paid through proxies to the Chief of staff, with a balance of N200 million outstanding, a default that reportedly contributed in triggering the current denial of the agency’s existence by aides of the President.
These are not mere allegations; they point to a disturbing pattern of institutionalised corruption, including the alleged sale of appointments to the highest bidders, a notorious trademark of the Tinubu administration.
In the light of the foregoing, the NDC demands as follows:
*The immediate removal of the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, to allow for a full, unbiased investigation, as his continued stay in office constitutes a clear conflict of interest and a threat to the integrity of any probe.
*The President should without delay constitute an independent investigative panel to thoroughly examine all aspects of this scandal, including the operations of the alleged PFIPC, budgetary allocations, account openings, staff approvals, and financial transactions.
*The panel must also investigate the mysterious death of Mr. Babatunde Tanimola and the assassination attempts on Prince Adeyemi, with a view to uncovering the full truth and bringing perpetrators to justice.
*The Chief of Staff should be compelled to produce all official documents signed since assuming office for forensic analysis.
*All relevant actors, including officials of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Office of the Accountant-General, and Head of Civil Service, should be questioned.
*The EFCC, ICPC, and Nigeria Police Force must immediately commence a full-scale investigation into this matter without fear or favour.
“The NDC will not accept the usual tactic of issuing a mere defensive press release from the Presidency as a deflective ploy. Nigerians deserve to know the truth through a transparency process that promotes fairness and justice. The culture of impunity and the brazen sale of public appointments must end. The NDC stands firmly with the people of Nigeria in demanding accountability. Anyone found culpable in this sordid affair, no matter how highly placed, must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law”.
Staff of disowned agency speak about Adeyemi, operations
At least three civil servants from OAGF were deployed on 28 August, 2025, according to a posting letter published on the OAGF website.
According to an online newspaper, PREMIUM TIMES, three senior civil servants, whom the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, OAGF, deployed to work at the now-disowned agency, offer a window into what the PFIPC’s activities looked like before it was shut down.
The three civil servants – Ojo Victor, Omeh Amarachukwu, and Wakili Saidu – were questioned by the investigating police officers and have been listed as witnesses in the case filed against Mr Adeyemi.
In their separate statements, written at the police headquarters on 10 November 2025, they described their work at the agency, their encounters with Mr Adeyemi, and what they thought of the agency.
How they were posted
In a letter dated 4 April 2025, Mr Adeyemi, using PFIPC letter-headed paper, wrote to the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF), requesting staff to fill five vacancies, including a Principal Accountant, Accountant I, Principal Auditor, Senior Auditor, and Auditor I.
“Kindly note that the office has the requirement(s)/conditions of self-accounting status according to FR1602(2009),” parts of the letter he signed, reads.
In another letter on the same date, Mr Adeyemi wrote to the Accountant General of the Federation, requesting the deployment of Ogaba Harry and Esther Orji from the Office of the Chief Economic Adviser to the President (OCEAP) to the PFIPC.
“We are aware that there is a need to formally deploy (post) them for the purpose of records and documentation,” he said.
It was yet unclear exactly when the deployments were approved but PREMIUM TIMES reported that at least three civil servants from OAGF were deployed on 28 August, 2025, according to a posting letter published on the OAGF website.
The three civil servants deployed are: Ojo Victor, 55, an Assistant Chief Accountant (ACA) in the accounts department; Omeh Amarachukwu, 40, an internal auditor; and Wakili Saidu, 45, also in the audit department.
What they say
In their separate statements, the three civil servants said they printed and took their posting letters to Mr Adeyemi on 1 September 2025. He received the letters and asked them to resume a week later on 8 September 2025. When they resumed, they were given an open office to share, they said. But they were never assigned any tasks or given any documentation, as they had expected.
“We are three officers posted at the same time, and when we resumed on 8 September, the three of us were given an open office where the three of us were sitting down without doing anything,” said Mr Victor. “Since then, there has been no correspondence between me and the DG,” Mr Saidu wrote.
Mr Victor also wrote that: “I have not been documented, and no schedule has been given to me since my assumption, which I find very strange.” Mr Amarachukwu said the officials have made complaints, hoping to get another posting, but it never came. “I only go to work once a week, the reason being that we have done nothing since we were posted there,” Mr Amarachukwu said.
Mr Victor said he comes to the office once or twice a week “just to show our face in the office because there was no assignment or schedule for any of us to do.”
Mr Saidu said he reports for work three days a week – Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.
However, all three of them said they had never heard of the agency before their posting there.
“I have never heard of that agency until I saw my name posted to the agency,” said Mr Saidu.
“I have not heard about the organisation before until my posting introduction came out on 28 August 2025,” Mr Victor said.
Timi Frank
Also reacting, former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress APC, Comrade Timi Frank, called for a thorough forensic probe into the circumstances surrounding the mysterious death of Dolapo Babatunde Tanimola, described as the principal intermediary in the appointment and bribery scandal currently rocking the presidency.
Frank, in a statement issued on Friday in Abuja, said the parents, family members, relatives and the Nigerian public deserve to know what led to Tanimola’s death at a time when his presence would have helped uncover the truth behind the scandal involving the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila.
Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, had earlier in a statement dismissed allegations against Gbajabiamila over the activities of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council PFIPC and its Director General, Adeniyi Adeyemi, claiming the police confirmed that Tanimola died in a hotel in Abuja five days before Adeyemi’s arrest.
Responding, Frank insisted that the circumstances leading to Tanimola’s death must be unravelled, noting that he was identified as an intermediary and go-between for Adeyemi in the bribery and appointment scandal.
According to him, “By now, we expected the Office of the Chief of Staff, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF, the Central Bank, the Budget Office, the National Assembly, and the relevant security agencies to be answering uncomfortable questions. Despite widespread claims that the agency Prince Adeyemi ran did not legally exist, there are information in the public domain that the purported Director General of Presidential Foreign Intervention and Promotion Council enjoyed six police officers as escorts, official vehicles and even an official residence.
