Politics
Adeyemi’s ‘Fake’ Council Listed Tinubu, Wike, Cardoso, Akume Others As Board Members – THISAGE
From Victor Osula, Abuja
The House of Representatives Ad hoc Committee investigating the activities of the fake Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) has uncovered fresh details of what lawmakers described as an elaborate impersonation scheme, revealing that the fictitious organisation listed President Bola Tinubu and several of Nigeria’s highest-ranking public officials as members of its governing board.
The startling disclosure came on Thursday during an investigative hearing, where the committee also queried the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) over its decision to issue seven official vehicle number plates to the council despite what lawmakers described as obvious irregularities in its registration documents.
The Chairman of the Ad hoc Committee, Yusuf Gagdi, told the hearing that documents submitted by the organisation named President Tinubu as Chairman of the board alongside a long list of senior government officials.
Those listed included the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume; Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike; the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation; the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice; as well as the ministers responsible for Finance, Aviation, Agriculture and Food Security, Interior, Budget and National Planning, Marine and Blue Economy, Police Affairs, Transport, Works and Power.
The committee expressed disbelief that such an extraordinary list of government officials did not trigger heightened scrutiny during the verification process.
Gagdi faulted the FRSC for failing to conduct more rigorous checks before approving the issuance of official number plates to the organisation.
According to him, the purported mandate presented by the PFIPC lacked the official security features expected of genuine Federal Government documents, yet it was accepted by the agency as part of its verification process.
He argued that the inclusion of the President and virtually the entire economic and administrative leadership of the Federal Government on the council’s board should have immediately prompted further investigations.
“The documents before the FRSC contained glaring inconsistencies. A council claiming to have the President and top government functionaries as board members ought to have attracted additional scrutiny before any official recognition was granted”, Gagdi stated.
Responding to the committee, FRSC Corps Marshal, Shehu Mohammed, defended the agency’s actions, insisting that the corps strictly complied with its Standard Operating Procedures throughout the application process.
He disclosed that the FRSC received the council’s initial application on April 4, 2025, followed by a reminder dated April 11, 2025, both signed by Prince Adeyemi Adeniyi.
According to him, the application was accompanied by documents detailing the establishment of the council, its mandate, governing structure and the vehicles for which official number plates were requested.
Mohammed further explained that the corps carried out independent verification by checking the organisation’s website, which was hosted on a Federal Government domain, and by physically visiting its office located within the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja.
“The website was on a government domain, and our officers also visited the office at the Federal Secretariat. Based on those findings and the supporting documents submitted, the organisation appeared to be a legitimate government agency”, the Corps Marshal told lawmakers.
Despite the explanation, members of the committee maintained that the verification process fell short of the standard expected of a government institution entrusted with issuing official vehicle registrations.
Thursday’s revelations further deepen the PFIPC scandal, which has already attracted separate investigations by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Nigeria Police Force and the National Assembly.
Earlier on Thursday, the ICPC submitted an interim investigation report to President Tinubu, recommending the prosecution of the alleged promoter of the fake council, Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew.
The anti-graft commission concluded that the PFIPC was never created by any law, Executive Order or valid government instrument and that documents used to support its operations, including appointment letters, were forged.
The ICPC also uncovered two additional fictitious agencies allegedly established by Adeyemi and identified institutional lapses across several Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) that enabled the fake organisation to operate undetected for an extended period.
Meanwhile, the House committee said its investigation would continue to determine how the fictitious council gained access to government facilities, secured official vehicle registrations and projected itself as a Federal Government agency despite lacking any legal foundation.
Lawmakers also vowed to establish whether public officials, through negligence or active collaboration, facilitated what is increasingly emerging as one of the most audacious cases of institutional impersonation in recent years.
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