PFIPC: ICPC names top civil servants allegedly linked to fake agency scandal, N3.75m payments

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences CommissionIndependent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has identified several civil servants who allegedly assisted Adeniyi Adeyemi, the director-general of the disowned Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), in obtaining government approvals and accessing official financial and administrative systems.

The findings are contained in the commission’s interim investigation report into the PFIPC controversy, which was ordered by President Bola Tinubu after the Presidency distanced itself from the organisation and Adeyemi.

According to the report, the purported agency was able to gain access to government structures not only through allegedly forged documents but also with the assistance of officials in various government institutions who processed its requests despite irregularities in the required procedures.

The ICPC said Adeyemi began seeking formal recognition within the government in November 2024 when he approached the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) for an administrative code, self-accounting status and approval to open accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

He reportedly backed the applications with documents including an appointment letter, an establishment instrument and a letter bearing State House letterhead, allegedly signed by one Akanbi Adewale.

However, investigators discovered that Akanbi Adewale did not exist, while forensic analysis indicated that the letter attributed to him had actually been signed by Adeyemi.

Despite the irregularities, the documents were used to process the applications.

On May 27, 2025, the OAGF granted the organisation self-accounting status and allocated administrative code 0111062001. The approval also included arrangements relating to establishment and recruitment waivers.

The development subsequently enabled the purported PFIPC to feature in the 2026 federal budget and obtain access to government financial systems.

The OAGF also created a Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) platform and a Sub-Treasury Account for the organisation.

Following a request from the PFIPC, the OAGF further instructed the CBN to open two domiciliary accounts. However, the CBN later informed the House of Representatives that the accounts were never activated because the purported agency failed to provide authorised signatories.

Civil servants allegedly facilitated recruitment waiver

The ICPC examined the involvement of three civil servants in securing an authorised establishment and recruitment waiver for the PFIPC.

They were Rose Achem, senior administrative officer to the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation; Patricia Akhigbe, an assistant director in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning; and Mimi Abu, director of organisation design and development at the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF).

The commission alleged that Achem introduced Akhigbe to Abu as the head of human resources of the PFIPC, despite Akhigbe being an assistant director in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning.

Investigators said the introduction was intended to help the purported council secure an authorised establishment and recruitment waiver.

The ICPC found that Achem, Akhigbe and Abu subsequently facilitated the approvals through the OHCSF.

The investigation also revealed that Adeyemi paid Akhigbe N500,000 during Easter in 2025. The payment was described as a “thank you for your support.”

According to the commission, the authorised establishment was granted on the same day the three officials met.

Investigators found no evidence that the PFIPC had formally submitted an application for the authorised establishment and recruitment waiver. Instead, the officials allegedly facilitated the approvals outside the prescribed procedure.

When investigators requested the relevant file from the OHCSF, the office reportedly said it could not be found.

Allegedly forged documents used

The ICPC also scrutinised Abu’s role because her department oversees authorised establishment, manpower requirements and recruitment waivers for federal government organisations.

The commission said the standard procedure requires newly established government bodies seeking approval to provide documents establishing their mandate, enabling instruments and the appointment letter of their head.

Investigators said Achem and Akhigbe met Abu on behalf of the PFIPC and submitted what the commission described as forged establishment instruments and an allegedly forged appointment letter for Adeyemi.

Abu reportedly described the controversial appointment letter, which was said to have been issued by the Chief of Staff to the President, as an “aberration”.

When the PFIPC was unable to upload the required documents through the OHCSF portal, its representatives reportedly submitted physical copies of the appointment letter and other purported enabling documents.

The ICPC also established that although the PFIPC requested the deployment of personnel in a letter dated May 9, 2025, no deployment was approved or carried out by the OHCSF.

How Adeyemi allegedly secured Federal Secretariat office

The investigation also examined Aminu Abdullahi, the official responsible for office allocation within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF).

According to the ICPC, Abdullahi was introduced to Adeyemi in March 2025 by Ibrahim Abdulkadir, a deputy director in General Services.

The introduction was reportedly aimed at helping Adeyemi obtain office accommodation at the Federal Secretariat after an earlier request to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had failed to yield the desired outcome.

The commission alleged that Abdullahi allocated offices previously occupied by former Chief Economic Adviser to the President, Doyin Salami, at the Federal Secretariat Phase III for the PFIPC’s temporary use without obtaining written approval.

Only two keys were available for the offices, and investigators alleged that Abdullahi broke the locks on the remaining doors to enable Adeyemi to access the other spaces.

The financial records also attracted the attention of investigators.

An analysis of Abdullahi’s bank statement showed that he allegedly received N3.25 million from Adeyemi in three instalments between March and November 2025.

Another suspected fake agency uncovered

The PFIPC investigation also led the ICPC to uncover another suspected fake agency, the National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office, which allegedly operated within the OSGF.

President Tinubu subsequently ordered the suspension of three permanent secretaries and the arrest of the alleged promoter of the organisation, George Buchi Nwabueze.

ICPC Chairman Musa Aliyu said investigators discovered that Nwabueze operated under different variations of his name and that suspected collaborators existed within the OSGF.

The commission said allegedly forged legislative instruments were used to make the entities appear legitimate and facilitate the opening of bank accounts in their names.

The discovery has raised fresh concerns over weaknesses in government systems for verifying organisations claiming to be federal agencies.

ICPC identifies weaknesses in government verification

The commission said weaknesses in civil service procedures contributed to the purported PFIPC obtaining official recognition and approvals.

According to the ICPC, the OHCSF’s standard operating procedure did not sufficiently require newly created federal institutions to submit relevant establishment documents. It also identified inadequate mechanisms for authenticating documents presented by such organisations.

The self-accounting status granted by the OAGF was particularly significant, as it allowed the purported council to operate within government financial reporting structures and use the approval when dealing with other government institutions.

The investigation provides further details of how Adeyemi’s purported agency moved between government institutions, obtaining administrative recognition and official responses despite allegedly lacking a legal basis for its establishment.

The purported agency was also listed in the 2026 Appropriation Act with a N1.3 billion allocation, although Adeyemi later denied preparing the budget.

Adeyemi has denied wrongdoing and insisted that his appointment was legitimate. He is facing an eight-count charge relating to alleged forgery, impersonation and other offences.

The Presidency has maintained that neither the PFIPC nor Adeyemi received official recognition under the Tinubu administration.

The ICPC recommended administrative action against Abu, Achem, Akhigbe and Abdullahi.