Nigeria is facing growing pressure to launch an independent investigation into the controversy surrounding the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), after prominent lawyer Femi Falana, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the African Democratic Congress (ADC), the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), HURIWA and other groups questioned how an agency the Presidency says does not exist allegedly received a ₦24 billion allocation in the 2026 national budget.
The controversy began after the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President disowned Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, who allegedly presented himself as the Director-General of the PFIPC and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC). Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila said forged appointment letters had surfaced and that Adeyemi was subsequently charged before the Federal High Court on allegations of forgery, impersonation and obtaining by false pretence.
Adeyemi has denied the allegations, insisting he was legitimately appointed and calling on President Bola Tinubu to establish an independent panel to investigate the matter. He said the court would determine the truth of the allegations against him.
Reacting to the development, human rights lawyer Femi Falana described the Presidency’s explanation as one that had exposed Nigeria to “unprecedented ridicule.” He questioned how an agency not created by law could allegedly appear in the Appropriation Act, operate from the Federal Secretariat, open accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria and have more than 300 civil servants reportedly posted to it. Falana also called for Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila to step aside to allow an independent investigation.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar gave President Tinubu a seven-day ultimatum to order a transparent and independent probe, warning that failure to act would fuel public suspicion that powerful interests within government may have benefited from the alleged fraud. He argued that the controversy had grown beyond allegations against one individual into a test of Nigeria’s institutional credibility.
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) also demanded a judicial panel of inquiry and named ten government officials, agencies and institutions it wants investigated, including the Office of the Chief of Staff, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Head of the Civil Service, the Budget Office, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Office of the National Security Adviser, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Office of the Accountant-General, the Nigeria Police Force, the Department of State Services and relevant committees of the National Assembly.
The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) said the scandal raises serious concerns about transparency, accountability and governance. The party called for the immediate removal of the Chief of Staff pending investigation, the establishment of an independent investigative panel and full investigations by the EFCC, ICPC and the Nigeria Police Force into all allegations surrounding the PFIPC.Meanwhile, reports by PREMIUM TIMES, cited in the Vanguard report, indicate that civil servants deployed to the agency in 2025 told investigators they reported for duty but were largely left without assignments. They also said they had never heard of the agency before their postings.
Former APC Deputy National Publicity Secretary Timi Frank also called for a forensic investigation into the death of Dolapo Babatunde Tanimola, described as an intermediary in the controversy, saying the circumstances surrounding his death should be fully examined.
The Presidency has maintained that the PFIPC is a fictitious organisation and that criminal charges against Adeyemi are already before the court. However, demands for an independent investigation continue to grow as questions mount over the agency’s reported budget allocation, staffing, banking operations and engagements with public institutions.
