The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has submitted an interim report to President Bola Tinubu on its investigation into the alleged fictitious Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, recommending the prosecution of its alleged Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi.
ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, disclosed this on Thursday after a meeting with the President at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, exactly 30 days after Tinubu directed the anti-graft agency to investigate the activities of the council.
Aliyu said preliminary findings showed that Adeyemi was never appointed by the Federal Government, adding that the appointment letter, gazette and other documents used to present the council as a government agency were forged.
According to him, the investigation also uncovered lapses in government verification and oversight mechanisms, which were allegedly exploited to create the impression that the PFIPC was a legitimate agency.
“Our interim report found weaknesses in verification, inter-agency oversight and government processes. Those weaknesses were exploited by Adeniyi, with some level of negligence,” Aliyu said.
He added that the commission found no evidence that any Federal Government funds were approved or released to the purported PFIPC or its related entity.
The ICPC chairman further disclosed that investigators uncovered two other agencies allegedly floated by Adeyemi — the FCT Investment Promotion Agency and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency and Public Private Partnership. He alleged that forged legislative instruments presented as enabling laws were used to facilitate the opening of bank accounts for the organisations.
Aliyu said the commission had recommended Adeyemi’s prosecution and called for administrative sanctions against public officers whose negligence allegedly allowed the fake agency to operate. He also urged the Federal Government to strengthen internal control systems across Ministries, Departments and Agencies to prevent similar incidents.
He, however, stressed that the report submitted to the President was only an interim one, noting that investigations were ongoing to identify other collaborators and build a stronger criminal case capable of withstanding judicial scrutiny.
The PFIPC controversy came to public attention after the Presidency disowned the council, insisting it was never established by the Federal Government despite appearing in the 2026 Appropriation Act with a budget allocation of ₦1.3bn. The Federal Government has since filed criminal charges against Adeyemi over alleged forgery, impersonation and fraudulent misrepresentation, while separate investigations by the House of Representatives and the ICPC are continuing into how the purported agency operated within government institutions.