By Stephen Simon
President Bola Tinubu has directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the activities of the purported Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), describing the body as fictitious and giving the anti-graft agency 30 days to submit a detailed report on its findings. The directive followed the discovery that the so-called council was never established by the Federal Government and has no legal or constitutional backing.
The directive was conveyed in a statement issued by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, who said the PFIPC had no basis in any law, presidential instrument, executive approval or other lawful act of government. According to the Presidency, the investigation is aimed at exposing those behind the alleged fraud and strengthening safeguards against similar attempts to impersonate government institutions.
According to the Presidency, one Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew allegedly presented himself as the Director-General of the non-existent council and falsely claimed to have been appointed by the President. He was also accused of using forged government documents and appointment letters to give legitimacy to the fictitious organisation while seeking official recognition and diplomatic support.
The ICPC has been mandated to investigate the alleged forgery of official government documents, the use of false claims of presidential appointment to obtain official recognition, including visa facilitation, as well as the opening and operation of multiple bank accounts in the names of purported government agencies using suspected forged documents. President Tinubu also directed that all persons found culpable should face the full weight of the law.
The President further instructed the anti-corruption agency to widen the investigation beyond the principal suspect to include all collaborators and to establish how a fictitious organisation was able to operate in a manner that gave it an appearance of official legitimacy. The Presidency said the probe would help identify institutional lapses that may have aided the alleged scheme.
The development marks one of the strongest responses yet by the Federal Government to allegations of identity fraud involving government institutions. Analysts say the outcome of the investigation could lead to tighter verification procedures for presidential appointments and official communications, particularly in dealings with foreign governments, financial institutions and international organisations.
The ICPC is expected to submit its report within the 30-day deadline, after which the Presidency will determine the next course of action. Observers say the investigation is likely to attract significant public attention as Nigerians await answers on how a non-existent government body allegedly operated under the guise of the Presidency and whether additional persons or institutions may have played a role in the affair.
