PFIPC Probe: ICPC Indicts Civil Servants Over ₦1.3bn Fake Agency Scandal

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered how several civil servants allegedly helped Adeniyi Adeyemi Mathew, the director-general of the now-disowned Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), obtain government approvals and gain access to official financial and administrative systems. The findings are contained in the ICPC interim investigation report on the PFIPC saga, submitted to President Bola Tinubu on August 6, 2026, exactly 30 days after the President directed the commission to investigate the matter. The investigation established that Adeyemi was never appointed by the Federal Government and that the PFIPC had no legal basis for its existence.

The ICPC report reveals that Adeyemi’s ability to penetrate government structures went beyond the forged documents he allegedly presented. It also depended on the actions of officials in several government institutions who processed his requests and facilitated approvals despite gaps in the required procedures. According to the ICPC, Adeyemi began seeking formal recognition within government structures in November 2024 when he approached the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) for an administrative code, self-accounting status and approval to open accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). He supported the applications with purported official documents, including an appointment letter, an establishment instrument, and a letter on State House letterhead allegedly signed by one Akanbi Adewale. Investigators found that Akanbi Adewale did not exist. Forensic examination also showed that the letter attributed to him was signed by Adeyemi himself. Despite these irregularities, the documents were used to process the applications. On 27 May 2025, the OAGF granted the organisation self-accounting status and assigned it the administrative code 0111062001, alongside authorised establishment and recruitment waiver arrangements. The approvals enabled the purported PFIPC to secure a place in the 2026 federal budget and gain access to government financial systems. The OAGF subsequently created a Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) platform and a Sub-Treasury Account for the organisation. Acting on a request from the PFIPC, the OAGF also issued a mandate to the CBN for the creation of two domiciliary accounts. The CBN later told the House of Representatives that the accounts were never activated because the purported agency failed to provide authorised signatories.

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The ICPC investigation examined the roles of several civil servants who allegedly facilitated the PFIPC’s operations. Three civil servants played key roles in securing an authorised establishment and recruitment waiver for the PFIPC. They are Rose Achem, senior administrative officer to the director-general of the Budget Office of the Federation; Patricia Akhigbe, an assistant director in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning; and Mimi Abu, director of organisation design and development at the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF). According to the ICPC, Achem introduced Akhigbe to Abu as the head of human resources of the PFIPC, even though Akhigbe was an assistant director in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning. The introduction was made to facilitate the purported council’s application for authorised establishment and recruitment waiver. The ICPC found that Achem, Akhigbe and Abu subsequently facilitated the approvals through the OHCSF. The investigation also found that Adeyemi paid Akhigbe ₦500,000 during Easter in 2025, with the payment described in evidence as a “thank you for your support”. The authorised establishment was granted on the same day the three officials met. Investigators found no evidence that the PFIPC had formally applied for an authorised establishment and recruitment waiver. Instead, Abu, Achem and Akhigbe proceeded with the approvals outside the required process. When investigators requested the relevant file from the OHCSF, the office reportedly said it was missing.

The ICPC scrutinised Abu’s role because her department is responsible for authorised establishment, manpower requirements and recruitment waivers for federal government organisations. Under the standard procedure, newly established government organisations seeking authorisation are expected to submit documents showing their mandate and establishment instruments, as well as the appointment letter of the head of the organisation. The investigation found that Achem and Akhigbe met Abu on behalf of the PFIPC and presented what investigators described as forged establishment instruments and a forged appointment letter for Adeyemi. Abu reportedly described the controversial appointment letter, said to have been issued by the Chief of Staff to the President, as an “aberration.” She told investigators she could not recall another government organisation presenting an appointment letter signed by the Chief of Staff. The ICPC also confirmed that the purported appointment letter did not originate from the Presidency and that forensic examination found the signature did not match the Chief of Staff’s official specimen signature.

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The ICPC also examined the role of Aminu Abdullahi, the official responsible for office allocation within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF). Abdullahi was responsible for coordinating the allocation of offices to political appointees within the OSGF. According to the investigation, Abdullahi was introduced to Adeyemi in March 2025 by Ibrahim Abdulkadir, a deputy director in General Services. The introduction was intended to guide Adeyemi through the process of obtaining office accommodation at the Federal Secretariat. The ICPC found that Abdullahi allocated offices previously occupied by the former Chief Economic Adviser to the President, Doyin Salami, at the Federal Secretariat Phase III for temporary use by the PFIPC without written approval. Only two keys were available for the allocated offices. The investigation found that Abdullahi broke the locks on the remaining doors to give Adeyemi access to the other office spaces. The financial trail also raised questions. An analysis of Abdullahi’s bank statement showed that he received ₦3.25 million from Adeyemi in three tranches between March and November 2025, according to the ICPC.

The ICPC has cleared Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, of any involvement in the scandal. According to the investigation, Adeyemi allegedly produced a fake appointment letter dated March 2024 using a State House letterhead, with a signature presented as that of Gbajabiamila. Investigators said they found no record showing that Gbajabiamila appointed Adeyemi or had any direct dealings with him over the purported agency. The ICPC also found no link between the Office of the Chief of Staff, the State House, and Adeyemi or the PFIPC. The commission explained that the Office of the Chief of Staff does not issue appointment letters for heads of government ministries, departments, and agencies. Its responsibility is to transmit presidential approvals to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, which handles the formal appointment process. The ICPC also checked official correspondence records from the Office of the Chief of Staff, including its dispatch system and electronic correspondence platform, and found no communication involving Adeyemi or the PFIPC from 2024 to September 2025.

The investigation further uncovered two other purported fictitious agencies allegedly created by Adeyemi to facilitate and expand the activities of the scheme. These are the FCT Investment Promotion Agency and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency and Public Private Partnership (FIFA-PPP). According to ICPC Chairman Musa Aliyu, forged legislative instruments were allegedly used to create the purported agencies and facilitate the opening and operation of bank accounts in their names.

The ICPC investigation identified weaknesses in existing civil service procedures that enabled the purported organisation to obtain official approvals. The commission said the OHCSF’s standard operating procedure did not adequately require newly established federal institutions to submit relevant establishment documents. It also found insufficient mechanisms for vetting and verifying documents presented by such organisations. Aliyu stated that weaknesses in verification procedures and inter-agency oversight created opportunities which were allegedly exploited by the suspect and his collaborators to operate the fictitious organisation. The self-accounting status granted by the OAGF was particularly significant because it enabled the purported council to operate within government financial reporting structures and became an important document in its dealings with other government institutions.

Following the ICPC findings, President Tinubu has directed the commissioning of a comprehensive forensic investigation into government processes and internal controls. The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, disclosed this after the Federal Executive Council meeting on August 19, 2026. Oyedele said the investigation would establish how such bodies were able to operate within the government structure and identify weaknesses in existing administrative, accounting and governance systems. The review will also examine the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS), particularly because the existence of fictitious agencies could potentially create room for the registration of non-existent employees.

The ICPC has recommended the prosecution of Adeniyi Adeyemi for offences including forgery, impersonation and other related offences. The commission also recommended administrative sanctions against public officers whose acts of commission, omission or negligence facilitated the illegal operation of PFIPC. The ICPC further proposed institutional reforms aimed at strengthening verification mechanisms, internal controls and inter-agency oversight across Ministries, Departments and Agencies of the Federal Government. Aliyu stressed that the investigation is still ongoing, particularly to identify other persons who may have participated in or facilitated the alleged scheme and to obtain further evidence necessary to support criminal prosecution.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has dismissed the ICPC interim report as predictable and inadequate, accusing the federal government of prioritising damage control over a thorough investigation. The ADC said the report failed to explain how a fictitious agency secured federal office space, had civil servants deployed to it and found its way into the 2026 budget with a N1.3 billion provision. The party stated: “A forgery may explain the first door that was opened. It cannot explain why every subsequent door appears to have opened as well”.