Fake agency probe: ICPC team grills embattled DG inside police detention

BY FRONTLINE REPORTERS

The controversy surrounding the alleged Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) took a dramatic turn on Wednesday as operatives of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) interrogated the self-acclaimed Director-General of the disputed agency, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, inside police detention.

Adeyemi, who has remained in custody at the Nigeria Police Force National Cybercrime Centre, is at the centre of an expanding investigation into claims that he fraudulently presented himself as the head of a presidential agency reportedly unknown to the Federal Government.

The probe, which has gripped the nation in recent weeks, centres on allegations of forged appointment letters, the opening of bank accounts in the names of non-existent government institutions, and the controversial inclusion of the PFIPC in the 2026 Appropriation Bill.

Sources familiar with the investigation disclosed that ICPC operatives arrived at the Cybercrime Centre at about 10 a.m. on Wednesday to commence Adeyemi’s interrogation. However, the session was temporarily suspended after his newly engaged legal counsel failed to appear.

Investigators, in compliance with criminal justice procedures guaranteeing suspects the right to legal representation, rescheduled the interview to 3 p.m.

“The ICPC was prepared to begin questioning Adeyemi earlier in the day, but the exercise had to be postponed because his lawyer was absent. To ensure due process, the session was moved to later in the afternoon,” a senior police source told Frontline Reporters on condition of anonymity.

Another source confirmed that the interrogation eventually commenced in the presence of Adeyemi’s lawyer but remained inconclusive.

“His lawyer eventually arrived, and the questioning proceeded. However, investigators could not conclude the session, and there is a strong possibility that it will continue today,” the source revealed.

The development comes as the House of Representatives intensifies its own investigation into the controversial agency, summoning several top government officials over the PFIPC’s alleged appearance in the 2026 budget and its purported access to government facilities.

Those expected before the Yusuf Gagdi-led Ad-hoc Committee include Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume; National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu; Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN); Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu; Director-General of the Budget Office, Tanimu Yakubu; and Accountant-General of the Federation, Shamseldeen Ogunjimi.

Also invited are officials from the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, the National Economic Council Secretariat, the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, and the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission.

The lawmakers are seeking explanations on how the PFIPC found its way into the 2026 budget proposals despite repeated denials by the Presidency and key government institutions that the agency ever existed.

The scandal widened earlier this week when Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, honoured an invitation by the ICPC as part of the ongoing investigation.

Adeyemi had alleged that Gbajabiamila personally issued him an appointment letter and collected money from him in exchange for the position. The allegations have been firmly denied by the Chief of Staff, who has since instituted legal action against the detained suspect.

Confirming Gbajabiamila’s appearance before the anti-graft agency, his counsel, Jiti Ogunye, stated that his client fully cooperated with investigators.

“In full cooperation with the ICPC and acting in line with the directive of President Bola Tinubu, my client appeared before the Commission on Monday, July 20, 2026, where he gave his testimony and responded to all questions relating to the activities of the fake PFIPC and related matters,” Ogunye said.

President Bola Tinubu had, on July 7, directed the ICPC to carry out a comprehensive investigation into the activities of the PFIPC after the Presidency declared that no such agency had ever been established by the Federal Government.

The President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said the probe would examine allegations that Adeyemi forged government documents and appointment letters, falsely claimed to be a presidential appointee, sought diplomatic recognition, facilitated visa requests, and opened multiple bank accounts using the identities of purported government agencies.

Further revelations emerged at a recent House hearing, where the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Dunoma Ahmed, distanced the ministry from the PFIPC and questioned its legitimacy.

Ahmed disclosed that Adeyemi had approached the ministry on at least three occasions—June 26, 2025; August 5, 2025; and June 5, 2026—introducing himself as Director-General of both the Presidential Economic Advisory Council and the PFIPC while seeking government endorsement for a proposed World Investment Summit in Nigeria.

According to the Permanent Secretary, all requests were rejected following due diligence checks that exposed discrepancies in the documents presented.

He further revealed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote to the Office of the National Security Adviser on October 16, 2025, seeking clarification on Adeyemi’s status. The NSA’s office subsequently informed the ministry that inquiries with both the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President showed that Adeyemi was unknown to any Federal Government institution.

Ahmed maintained that the ministry neither facilitated diplomatic engagements on behalf of the PFIPC nor instructed Nigerian missions abroad to recognise or collaborate with the organisation.

As both the ICPC and the House of Representatives continue their investigations, the PFIPC saga is increasingly emerging as one of the most sensational cases of alleged impersonation, forgery and institutional fraud in recent Nigerian history.