Politics
PFIPC: Court issues arrest warrant for ‘fake DG’ Adeyemi
A FEDERAL High Court in Abuja has ordered the arrest of Adeniyi Adeyemi, who claims to be the Director-General of the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), after he failed to appear for his arraignment over alleged forgery, fraud and impersonation.
The presiding judge, Mohammed Umar, issued a bench warrant for his arrest on Tuesday, July 14, following an application by the prosecution counsel, Wisdom Madaki, who argued that Adeyemi had repeatedly failed to honour court invitations.
Adeyemi is facing an eight-count charge in suit number FHC/ABJ/CR/562/2025, bordering on alleged forgery, fraud and impersonation.
When the case was mentioned before court in Maitama, Abuja, Adeyemi was absent. However, a lawyer, Genesis Francis, reportedly announced his appearance for the defendant.
Madaki told the court that Tuesday’s sitting was the fifth time the matter had come up, adding that all previous adjournments resulted from Adeyemi’s failure to appear.
Relying on Section 394 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, the prosecution urged the court to issue a warrant compelling the defendant’s appearance.
The judge subsequently granted the application and ordered Adeyemi’s arrest, while also adjourning the case to July 27, 2027, for further proceedings.
Background
The court proceedings are the latest development in the controversy surrounding the PFIPC, whose existence has been denied by the Presidency despite its inclusion in the 2026 Appropriation Act.
The ICIR reported that the Nigeria Police filed an eight-count charge against Adeyemi after the Presidency accused him of operating a fictitious government agency and using forged State House documents to legitimise its activities.
According to the charge sheet, Adeyemi and two other defendants allegedly conspired to forge presidential letterheaded papers, appointment letters purportedly signed on behalf of President Bola Tinubu, and other official documents to create legitimacy for the purported council.
The police also accused him of falsely presenting himself as the Director-General of the PFIPC between 2024 and 2025.
The charges followed the Presidency’s July 1 declaration that the PFIPC never existed under Tinubu’s administration, describing Adeyemi as an impostor who allegedly deceived public institutions, foreign missions and the public using forged documents.
However, The ICIR’s findings found that the PFIPC appears in the 2026 Appropriation Act under the Presidency with a total allocation of ₦1.302 billion, comprising ₦802.9 million for personnel costs, ₦200 million for overheads and ₦300 million for capital expenditure, raising fresh questions about the government’s explanation.
The ICIR also reported that Adeyemi rejected the Presidency’s claims, insisting that the council operated from the Federal Secretariat, maintained Central Bank of Nigeria accounts and obtained approval for more than 300 personnel through the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation.
Before the controversy, the council had publicly engaged with several government agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC), and Chinese investment officials.
Mustapha Usman is an investigative journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: musman@icirnigeria.com. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M
