The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has submitted an interim report to President Bola Tinubu on its investigation into the alleged fictitious Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), recommending the prosecution of its purported Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi.
ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, disclosed this on Thursday after meeting with President Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, exactly 30 days after the President directed the anti-corruption agency to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the disputed government entity.
Aliyu said preliminary findings by the commission showed that Adeyemi was never appointed by the Federal Government and that documents allegedly used to establish the PFIPC, including an appointment letter and gazette, were forged.
The investigation centres on allegations of forgery, impersonation and fraudulent representation linked to the operation of the PFIPC, which the Presidency had earlier described as a non-existent government agency.
Speaking at the State House, the ICPC chairman said investigators uncovered weaknesses in government verification and oversight procedures that were exploited to create the impression that the PFIPC was a legitimate institution.
“Our interim report found that there are weaknesses in verification, inter-agency oversight and government processes. We discovered that those weaknesses were exploited by Adeniyi, with some level of negligence,” Aliyu said.
He added that the investigation found no evidence that Federal Government funds were approved or released to the alleged fake agency.
“Our investigation found that no Federal Government funds were approved or disbursed to the fake PFIPC/PEAC,” he stated.
According to Aliyu, investigators also uncovered two other entities allegedly created by Adeyemi — the FCT Investment Promotion Agency (FIFA) and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency and Public Private Partnership (PIPA-PPP).
He alleged that Adeyemi used forged legislative instruments presented as enabling laws to support the opening of bank accounts for the entities.
ICPC recommendations
Aliyu said the commission recommended the prosecution of Adeyemi, administrative sanctions for public officials whose negligence facilitated the operation of the alleged fake agency, and reforms to strengthen internal controls across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
“Our recommendation is that Mr Adeniyi Adeyemi should be prosecuted. Administrative sanctions should also be imposed on public officers whose acts of omission and negligence facilitated the illegal operation of PFIPC/PEAC.
“There is also a need for institutional reforms so that the internal controls of MDAs can be strengthened to prevent this kind of illegal activity,” he said.
The ICPC chairman stressed that the report submitted to the President was only an interim report, adding that investigations were ongoing to identify other individuals allegedly involved and gather further evidence for possible criminal proceedings.
“We have continued with the investigation of the activities of Mr Adeniyi Adeyemi and his collaborators so that we can unravel more facts and file criminal charges that can stand the test of time before a court of competent jurisdiction,” Aliyu said.
The PFIPC controversy emerged after the Presidency disowned the council, stating that it was not a government agency despite appearing in the 2026 Appropriation Act with a reported budget allocation of ₦1.3bn.
The Federal Government has since filed charges against Adeyemi over alleged offences including forgery, impersonation and fraudulent misrepresentation, while separate investigations by the House of Representatives and the ICPC continue into how the alleged fake agency operated within government structures.
