The controversy centers on Prince Mathew Adeniyi Adeyemi, who claims to be Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) — a body the Presidency insists doesn’t legally exist. Adeyemi is currently facing trial on forgery, impersonation and conspiracy charges, but he denies wrongdoing and says he holds valid appointment documents, with his case due back in Abuja’s Federal High Court later this month.
What’s fueling the outrage is that despite the Presidency calling PFIPC fictitious, the Federal Government maintains PFIPC does not exist, while Adeyemi allegedly forged a presidential appointment letter purportedly signed by Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila, operated a fictitious government agency, and maintained dozens of bank accounts, including some allegedly opened in the names of non-existent government bodies — yet, per multiple reports, the “non-existent” agency reportedly secured a multi-billion-naira line in the 2026 budget, opened accounts with the Central Bank, and got approval to recruit over 300 staff.
Who’s demanding a probe:
- Atiku Abubakar (ADC presidential candidate) gave President Tinubu a seven-day ultimatum for an independent investigation, arguing the case has moved past one man’s alleged forgery into a test of whether Nigeria’s budgetary and civil-service institutions can be exploited undetected.
- ADC wants a full Judicial Panel of Inquiry and specifically wants Gbajabiamila investigated over the bribery claims and how documents bearing his office’s authority were allegedly issued.
- NDC has gone further, explicitly calling for Gbajabiamila’s removal/suspension as Chief of Staff, calling his continued presence in office a conflict of interest for any credible probe.
- Femi Falana (SAN), civil society groups like HURIWA, and Afenifere have joined the calls for a thorough investigation.
Two deaths/incidents are adding to the pressure: the death of an alleged intermediary, Babatunde Tanimola, and Adeyemi’s claims of surviving assassination attempts — both of which campaigners want independently investigated.
Pushback: The Presidency (through spokesman Bayo Onanuga) has firmly denied any wrongdoing by Gbajabiamila and stands by the forgery case against Adeyemi. The Arewa Youth Consultative Forum backed the government’s account as exonerating Gbajabiamila, and the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has urged restraint, arguing Gbajabiamila shouldn’t be removed before any judicial finding.
