ICPC indicts PFIPC’s Adeyemi, recommends prosecution after Tinubu probe

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has recommended the prosecution of the alleged mastermind behind the controversial fake Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), revealing that the suspect forged presidential documents, created fictitious government agencies and unlawfully occupied a government office to perpetrate the fraud.

Chairman of the ICPC, Musa Aliyu, disclosed this on Thursday while briefing State House Correspondents after presenting an interim investigative report to President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The briefing followed a 30-day investigation ordered by the President on July 7 into allegations surrounding the purported Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council.

Aliyu said the investigation established that Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew was never appointed by the Federal Government and that the so-called Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council had no legal existence.

“As you may recall, on the 7th of July, Mr. President directed the ICPC to conduct an investigation into the fake Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council and submit a report within 30 days. Today, exactly within the stipulated period, we have submitted an interim report based on our interactions with all stakeholders involved,” he said.

According to him, Tinubu directed the anti-corruption agency to publicly disclose its findings in the interest of transparency and accountability.

“The President took the right decision in the spirit of transparency and accountability and directed the ICPC to address the media for the benefit of Nigerians so they will know what our investigation discovered.”

Aliyu said investigators established that Matthew’s purported appointment letter was completely forged and did not emanate from the Presidency.

“It has been established that Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew was never appointed by the Federal Government or any authority whatsoever.

“The Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, which sometimes they called the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, was never established by any law, executive order or any valid instrument of government.

“The appointment letter presented by Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew was completely forged alongside similar documents used to perpetuate the illegal activities of the fake agency.”

He added that a purported government gazette used to legitimise the agency was also fabricated.

“If you recall, there was a gazette which he used to support the fake agency. That gazette is an illegal document that never passed through the processes prescribed by law.”

The ICPC chairman revealed that the suspect allegedly broke into the offices previously occupied by the defunct Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC) and used the premises to create an impression that the organisation was a legitimate government institution.

“Our investigation found that the office used by the fake agency was the office of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council. The office was broken into and access was gained illegally. That was how he was able to operate from there.”

He said the suspect subsequently appropriated the identity and operational instruments of the former council to lend credibility to the illegal operation.

In a startling revelation, Aliyu disclosed that investigators uncovered two additional fictitious government agencies allegedly created by the suspect.

According to him, they are the FCT Investment Promotion Agency (FIPA) and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency/Public-Private Partnership (FIPA-PPP).

“The ICPC also discovered that Adeniyi Adeyemi created two additional fictitious government agencies apart from the one already known in the public domain.

“To facilitate the creation of these agencies, he used fake legislative instruments styled as enabling Acts and relied on them to open bank accounts.”

He disclosed that the suspect opened two accounts with a commercial bank allegedly to support the activities of the fake agencies.

Despite the elaborate scheme, Aliyu said the commission found no evidence that Federal Government funds were released to the fake organisation.

“Our investigation found that no funds of the Federal Government were approved or disbursed to the fake PFIPC.

“We also discovered no weaknesses in the systems of the State House or the Central Bank of Nigeria during our investigation.

“The fake appointment letter did not originate from the Presidency.”

While absolving the Presidency and the Central Bank, the ICPC faulted several Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) for institutional lapses that allegedly enabled the suspect’s activities.

The commission identified weaknesses in verification procedures, inter-agency coordination and internal controls, saying these loopholes were exploited “with some level of negligence.”

“Our investigation found that some public officers failed to carry out due diligence and failed to comply with standard operating procedures in their ministries and departments. That gave him the opportunity to carry out these illegal acts.”

Aliyu disclosed that the agencies where weaknesses were identified include the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), 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), among others.

The ICPC chairman said the interim report recommended the immediate prosecution of Matthew, disciplinary action against negligent public officials and sweeping institutional reforms.

“Our recommendations are that Mr. Adeniyi Adeyemi should be prosecuted.

“Secondly, administrative sanctions should be imposed on public officers whose acts of omission and negligence facilitated the illegal operation of the fake agency.

“We also recommended institutional reforms to strengthen internal controls across MDAs to block this kind of illegal activity.”

Aliyu stressed that investigations remain ongoing as the commission seeks to identify collaborators and build a watertight criminal case.

“This report is interim. We have continued with investigations into the activities of Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew and his collaborators so that we can unravel more facts and file criminal charges that will stand the test of time before a court of competent jurisdiction.”

Responding to questions from State House Correspondents, Aliyu confirmed that Matthew had been interrogated by investigators and had made statements to the commission.

“Yes, we interacted with Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew. He is among the persons we have interviewed and from whom we obtained statements. We have considered what he told us and drawn our findings based on the evidence before us.”

On allegations involving about ₦400 million, the ICPC chairman declined further comment, saying the matter forms part of the ongoing criminal investigation.

“I don’t want to go into that allegation because it is part of the criminal investigation. Once we conclude everything and proceed to court, Nigerians will see what our investigation uncovered.”

He added that while the President had not set a fresh deadline for concluding the criminal investigation, the commission was awaiting presidential feedback on its interim report while continuing work on the case.