The federal government has arraigned Adeniyi Adeyemi, director-general of the fictitious Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), on an eight-count criminal charge.
Adeyemi was arraigned on Wednesday before Mohammed Umar, a judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, where he pleaded not guilty to the charges.
During the proceedings, Rotimi Oyedepo, director of public prosecutions, told the court that the attorney-general of the federation (AGF) had directed him to take over the case from the police.
Oyedepo asked the court to remand Adeyemi in prison custody.
However, Genesis Francis, counsel to Adeyemi, told the court that his client had submitted a bail application since January.
BACK STORY
Adeyemi has remained in police custody since his arrest in Osun State on July 14.
Before his arrest, a Federal High Court in Abuja had ordered that he be arrested after he failed to comply with the court’s summons.
Adeyemi was identified as the mastermind behind the fictitious PFIPC, which allegedly operated as a government agency despite having no legal standing or presidential declaration. The council reportedly received an allocation in the 2026 budget, occupied an office at the Federal Secretariat and recruited staff.
He had alleged that Femi Gbajabiamila, chief of staff to the president, collected N400 million through a proxy in connection with an appointment letter to the fictitious agency.
Following public criticism over the matter, President Bola Tinubu directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the PFIPC controversy.
Adeyemi subsequently appealed to Tinubu to establish an independent, multi-stakeholder investigative panel to investigate the controversy surrounding the council and the alleged N1.3 billion budget allocation.