PFIPC: Accountant-General Alleges Suspect Intercepted State House Letter That Could Have Exposed Forgery
The Accountant-General of the Federation, Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, has alleged that a key letter from the Office of the Accountant-General to the State House was intercepted by Adeniyi Adeyemi, a development he said prevented the early discovery of forged documents linked to the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).
Ogunjimi made the disclosure on Monday while testifying before the House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating the PFIPC controversy and the ₦1.3 billion appropriated to the council in the 2026 budget.
The PFIPC controversy has drawn national attention following allegations that the council operated with forged documents. Femi Gbajabiamila, Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, has also been mentioned in the matter after Adeyemi reportedly claimed he was appointed by the Chief of Staff—a claim Gbajabiamila has denied.
Adeyemi was arrested by operatives of the Police Intelligence Response Team (IRT) in Osun State on July 14.
According to Ogunjimi, the Office of the Accountant-General first became aware of the council in November 2024 after receiving what appeared to be an authentic request on State House letterhead seeking the creation of an administrative code for the agency to enable budgeting, accounting and financial reporting.
He explained that the request was processed in line with established procedures, and the administrative code was subsequently issued. A response was sent to the State House on November 29, 2024, with a copy forwarded to the Budget Office of the Federation.
However, Ogunjimi alleged that the correspondence never reached the State House because it was intercepted by Adeyemi.
He told lawmakers that had the letter been delivered, State House officials would have immediately realised that they never initiated the original request, thereby exposing the alleged forgery at an early stage.
The Accountant-General further disclosed that investigations later revealed that all documents submitted by those behind the PFIPC—including the purported Act establishing the council and the appointment letter presented to government officials—were forged.
He explained that treasury officials approved the administrative code because the request appeared to have originated from the Presidency, giving officials no reason to suspect any irregularity.
Ogunjimi also clarified issues surrounding the deployment of government personnel to the council, stating that two officials who eventually worked with the PFIPC had originally been posted to the Office of the Chief Economic Adviser to the President in 2010 and 2013. He said the Treasury only discovered their involvement with the council after the controversy became public.
He further revealed that the PFIPC had applied to open a Treasury Single Account (TSA) as well as two domiciliary accounts in United States dollars and British pounds with the Central Bank of Nigeria to facilitate foreign investment transactions and preparations for an international investment summit.
While the domiciliary accounts were approved strictly for receiving inflows, the request for a Treasury Single Account was rejected. Ogunjimi added that none of the accounts became operational because the council failed to fulfil the conditions required for activation.
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives committee has directed the Inspector-General of Police to produce Adeyemi before it on Wednesday for questioning as investigations into the alleged forgery and the PFIPC operations continue.
