ICPC chairman Musa Aliyu says Adeniyi Adeyemi used forged legislative instruments to create FIPA and FIPA-PPP and open bank accounts.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) says it has uncovered two additional fictitious government agencies allegedly created by Adeniyi Adeyemi, self-proclaimed Director-General of the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC).
The matter remains under active investigation and is sub judice.
The anti-graft agency said Adeyemi, also known as Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, allegedly created the FCT Investment Promotion Agency (FIPA) and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency/Public-Private Partnership (FIPA-PPP) to expand the fraudulent scheme.
Musa Adamu Aliyu, ICPC Chairman, disclosed the development on Thursday while briefing State House correspondents after presenting an interim investigation report to President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The briefing followed a 30-day investigation ordered by the president on 7 July into allegations surrounding the purported council.
What the ICPC’s interim report found
Aliyu said investigations established that Adeyemi was never appointed by the federal government or any government authority, and that the PFIPC, which he said at some point operated under the name “Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council,” had no legal existence, having been created by neither an Act of the National Assembly, an executive order, nor any constitutional process.
“Our investigation established that Adeniyi Adeyemi was never appointed by the Federal Government or any authority of government,” he said.
He said the appointment letter Adeyemi presented was forged, and that the fake PFIPC unlawfully took over office space and official instruments previously used by another government body.
“The ICPC also discovered that Adeniyi Adeyemi created two additional fictitious government agencies apart from the one already known in the public domain. To facilitate the creation of these agencies, he used fake legislative instruments styled as enabling Acts and relied on them to open bank accounts,” Aliyu said.
Aliyu said investigators found that Adeyemi exploited weaknesses in government verification and inter-agency oversight processes, with some level of negligence on the part of officials involved.
“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,” he said.
He added, however, that the investigation confirmed no federal government funds were ever approved or disbursed to the fake PFIPC or the related Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC).
ICPC recommends prosecution as probe continues
Aliyu said the commission had recommended prosecuting Adeyemi, disciplining public officials whose negligence enabled the fraud, and implementing reforms to strengthen internal controls across ministries, departments and agencies.
He said investigations were continuing to identify other collaborators and build a stronger criminal case before charges are filed in court.
“We have continued with the investigation of the activities of Mr Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew and his collaborators so that we can unravel more and file criminal charges that can stand the test of time,” Aliyu said.
Sunday Dare, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Public Communications, said Tinubu would review the report and consult further with the Attorney-General of the Federation before taking action, adding that all relevant agencies, including law enforcement authorities, would continue their investigations to ensure the matter is comprehensively resolved.
