President Bola Tinubu has directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the activities of the alleged fictitious Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), ordering the anti-graft agency to submit its findings within 30 days.
The directive, announced by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, follows the Presidency’s insistence that the council was never created by the Federal Government and has no legal or executive backing.
According to the Presidency, the investigation will focus on the alleged use of forged appointment letters and official government documents by Adeniyi Adeyemi Mathew, who reportedly presented himself as the Director-General of the council and claimed to have been appointed by the President.
The probe will also examine allegations that the suspect used the purported appointment to obtain official recognition, seek diplomatic support, facilitate visa applications and open bank accounts in the names of government agencies using forged documents.
President Tinubu further directed the ICPC to investigate how the alleged fake agency gained an appearance of legitimacy within government institutions, including the circumstances surrounding the use of false official documents, movement of funds and the involvement of any public officials, private individuals, financial institutions or intermediaries.
He also instructed the commission to identify weaknesses in government procedures that may have enabled the alleged scheme and recommend measures to prevent similar incidents in the future.
All Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) have been directed to cooperate fully with the ICPC by providing all relevant records and information required to conclude the investigation.
The Presidency stressed that anyone found culpable would face the full weight of the law.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Police Force has released the father of the suspect after questioning him over his son’s whereabouts.
The elderly man was reportedly detained after officers failed to locate Adeyemi during a visit to the family’s residence, a move that attracted criticism from human rights lawyer Femi Falana, SAN, who represents the suspect.
Falana described the arrest as unlawful, insisting that his client had not absconded and had consistently appeared in court. He maintained that Adeyemi would attend the next hearing scheduled for July 27.
The controversy has also drawn reactions from the Senate, which distanced itself from the matter.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Publicity, Senator Yemi Adaramodu, said the upper chamber could not intervene because no formal petition had been submitted and the matter is already before the court.
Although he acknowledged that the agency has a budgetary allocation in the 2026 Appropriation Act, Adaramodu maintained that the National Assembly neither created the agency nor was responsible for verifying presidential appointments.
He added that the Senate would only consider the matter if a formal petition is presented by any interested party.
The alleged PFIPC controversy escalated after reports revealed that the agency received a ₦1.3 billion allocation in the 2026 budget despite repeated claims by the Presidency that it does not legally exist.
Adeyemi, who claims to be the council’s Director-General, is currently standing trial before the Federal High Court in Abuja on charges bordering on conspiracy, forgery and impersonation.
