Parliamentary probe into phantom agency scam: Lawmakers to question Accountant-General today

The House of Representatives ad hoc committee, led by Yusuf Gagdi, is set to interrogate the Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, today, as the committee's high-profile investigation enters its third week, probing the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council's establishment and operations.

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The committee is investigating how the PFIPC, described by the Federal Government as non-existent, secured official office accommodation within the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja and received a budgetary allocation of more than N1.32bn in the 2026 Appropriation Act, despite lacking legal recognition.

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The investigation has drawn significant public attention due to allegations that the agency operated within government structures, raising concerns about possible lapses in public financial management and institutional oversight, with the committee seeking to determine whether administrative failures or deliberate misconduct enabled the agency to operate within the federal bureaucracy.

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At today’s hearing, Ogunjimi is expected to explain the processes through which the PFIPC obtained a government budget code, enabling the agency to appear in the national budget despite questions surrounding its legal status, with his testimony expected to provide further insight into the budgetary and financial procedures that facilitated the agency’s inclusion in the federal government’s expenditure framework.

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Several top government officials, including the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack, the Director of Banking Services at the Central Bank of Nigeria, Abdullahi Hamisu, and the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Mr Tanimu Yakubu, have appeared before the lawmakers, highlighting apparent gaps in administrative processes that allowed the agency to function as though it had official government approval.

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The committee’s investigation gained momentum following the arrest of Mr Adeyemi Adeniyi, who presented himself as the Director-General of the PFIPC, and was arrested by operatives of the Nigeria Police Force after allegedly claiming that he paid N400m through an intermediary to the Chief of Staff to the President, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila, to facilitate his appointment as head of the council.

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The allegation generated widespread public interest due to its implications for transparency and accountability within government institutions, but both the Presidency and Gbajabiamila have firmly denied any connection to Adeyemi or the claims attributed to him, describing him as an impostor and dismissing the allegations as false.

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Government officials have consistently maintained that the PFIPC is not a legally established federal agency, deepening concerns over how it was able to obtain office space, process official documentation, and secure budgetary provisions, with the committee expected to determine whether administrative failures, institutional negligence, or deliberate misconduct enabled the agency to operate within the federal bureaucracy.

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Several senior government officials, including the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, and the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, are still expected to appear before the panel as the investigation progresses.

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Their testimonies are expected to assist the committee in establishing whether due process was followed at various stages of the agency’s emergence and whether any public officials played a role in facilitating its activities, with the committee seeking to strengthen public institutions, safeguard public funds, and restore confidence in government systems.

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The House committee has reiterated its commitment to conducting a thorough, transparent, and non-partisan investigation, insisting that anyone found culpable will be held accountable in accordance with the law, with lawmakers maintaining that the probe is aimed at identifying weaknesses that allowed the controversy surrounding the PFIPC to arise.