President Bola Tinubu has received the interim report of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC on its investigation into the activities of the fake Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council PFIPC, with the anti-graft agency recommending the prosecution of the alleged mastermind, Adeyemi Matthew.
Briefing State House Correspondents after presenting the report to the President at the Presidential Villa Abuja on Thursday, ICPC Chairman, Musa Adamu SAN, said the investigation established that Adeyemi Matthew was never appointed by the Federal Government and that the PFIPC, also referred to as the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, was never created by any law, Executive Order or any valid government instrument.
He added that the appointment letter presented by the suspect, along with other supporting documents, was completely forged and did not originate from the Presidency.
The ICPC Chairman disclosed that investigators also uncovered two additional fictitious agencies allegedly created by Adeyemi Matthew — the FCT Investment Promotion Agency (FIPA) and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency/Public-Private Partnership, FIPA-PPP — using forged legislative instruments to open bank accounts and carry out illegal activities.
He said the suspect unlawfully took over the office of the defunct Presidential Economic Advisory Council, PEAC after gaining access to the facility and used it to project the fake agency.
He, however, stressed that no Federal Government funds were approved or disbursed to the fake agency and that no security breach was found within the Presidency or the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.
Adamu said the investigation identified weaknesses in verification processes, inter-agency coordination and oversight across several Ministries, Departments and Agencies, including the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the Budget Office and the National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA.
According to him, these lapses, coupled with negligence by some public officers, enabled the suspect to operate unchecked.
He said the Commission has recommended the prosecution of Adeyemi Matthew, administrative sanctions against public officers whose acts of omission facilitated the operation of the fake agency, and institutional reforms to strengthen internal controls across MDAs.
Adamu added that the report submitted to President Tinubu is an interim report, noting that criminal investigations are continuing to uncover more evidence and identify collaborators before charges are filed in court.
(Follow AIT News on WhatsApp, AfricaIndependentTV on YouTube, ait_online on Facebook and X (Formerly Twitter), and officialait on TikTok, Instagram and Threads)
Editor: Terverr Tyav
