By Chukwudi Obasi
The House of Representatives ad hoc committee probing the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) on Wednesday declared as fake the appointment letter presented by the council’s self-acclaimed Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi, saying investigations had also exposed the legal instrument used to legitimise the agency as a forgery.
The committee said findings from relevant government agencies established that the disputed agency secured official recognition using forged documents, a development that has deepened the ongoing probe into how the body found its way into the 2026 federal budget.
Chairman of the committee, Rep. Yusuf Gagdi, disclosed the findings after the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HCSF), Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, appeared before the panel for the second time to conclude her testimony.
According to Gagdi, independent verification by multiple government institutions confirmed that neither Adeyemi’s purported appointment letter nor the Act presented in support of the council’s establishment was authentic.
“It was established that the so-called letter of appointment was fake. Different agencies confirmed it, and the Act presented to the Head of Service was equally fake and forged by the DG. That has been established.”
Walson-Jack admitted that her office failed to subject the documents to rigorous scrutiny before recognising the purported council, acknowledging that due diligence fell short of the standards expected of the Federal Civil Service.
She explained that officials initially accepted the documents because they carried the State House logo and what appeared to be a genuine official signature, leaving no immediate reason to question their authenticity.
However, she said subsequent verification, backed by police forensic examination and comparisons with authentic State House correspondence, confirmed that the signatures on the documents were forged.
“We relied on documents that appeared genuine. Subsequent verification and police forensic findings confirmed that the signatures were different.”
The Head of Service assured lawmakers that the verification process in her office would be strengthened to prevent similar lapses and make official document authentication more robust.
*IGP: Police need court order to compel ‘DG’s’ appearance
The committee also heard from representatives of the Inspector-General of Police, Deputy Commissioner of Police Olufemi Akinola and Assistant Commissioner of Police Bashir Abdullahi, on why Adeyemi failed to appear before lawmakers despite an earlier directive compelling his attendance.
Akinola told the committee that the police could not produce the self-acclaimed Director-General because a subsisting court order restrained further action against him, adding that only another court of competent jurisdiction could vacate the order.
“He can only appear before this committee upon the order of a court of competent jurisdiction.”
The explanation followed the committee’s earlier directive giving the Inspector-General of Police 48 hours to produce Adeyemi to explain how the disputed council obtained official recognition and processed government correspondence.
Following the submission, Gagdi adjourned further hearing on the matter until next week.
The investigation stems from allegations by Adeyemi that the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, demanded 48 per cent of the council’s purported ₦27.3 billion take-off grant, received ₦400 million through a proxy and later requested an additional ₦200 million to facilitate presidential approvals.
Gbajabiamila has denied all the allegations, insisting he has no personal, official or professional relationship with Adeyemi. He also rejected claims that he demanded or received money, was connected to the alleged death of Babatunde Tanimola, attempted to assassinate Adeyemi or interfered with investigations by security agencies.
The allegations prompted President Bola Tinubu to direct the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the claims, while the House constituted a 12-member ad hoc committee to examine the circumstances surrounding the establishment of the disputed agency, its inclusion in the 2026 Appropriation Act and the alleged ₦1.3 billion appropriated for it.
Earlier in the probe, Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Tanimu Yakubu, told lawmakers that although the National Assembly appropriated funds for the council, no kobo was released because the statutory conditions required for disbursement were never satisfied.
“While funds were appropriated, none was released or spent because the conditions precedent for payment were never met.”
The committee is expected to resume its hearing next week as it intensifies efforts to determine how the disputed agency secured official recognition, gained access to government processes and was captured in the 2026 federal budget despite the alleged forged documents uncovered during the investigation.
