ABUJA, - Nigeria's central bank said it opened two foreign currency accounts for the disputed Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) after receiving authorisation from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF), despite questions over the council's legal status. The disclosure was made on Monday during a hearing of a House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating the legal basis, operations and budgetary allocation of the council, which lawmakers have described as a "phantom" agency.
The development came as the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) questioned President Bola Tinubu's Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, over allegations made by the council's self-proclaimed Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi.
Adeyemi has alleged that he paid 400 million naira to Gbajabiamila through the late Babatunde Dolapo Tanimola to secure his appointment and claimed the chief of staff demanded 48% of the council's proposed 27.3 billion naira take-off grant. Gbajabiamila has denied the allegations and filed a 15 billion naira defamation lawsuit against Adeyemi.
The controversy has also focused on how more than 1.3 billion naira was allocated to the PFIPC in Nigeria's approved 2026 budget, despite uncertainty over its legal establishment. Reports have also indicated that Adeyemi obtained approvals to recruit 300 employees, secure office space at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja and open accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Appearing before lawmakers, Hamisu Abdullahi, a CBN director representing Governor Olayemi Cardoso, said the bank acted on an official mandate from the OAGF dated July 29, 2025, to open two domiciliary accounts for the Presidential Economic Advisory Council/Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council.
The accounts, one denominated in U.S. dollars and the other in pounds sterling, were opened on July 30, 2025, after the bank completed its standard verification procedures, he said.
Abdullahi told the committee the accounts have never become operational because authorised signatories were not provided.
He said the accounts have remained dormant with zero balances since they were opened and have recorded no deposits, withdrawals, foreign exchange allocations or other transactions.
He added that the CBN opens and manages accounts for federal government ministries, departments and agencies only upon instructions from the OAGF and had no direct correspondence with the council regarding the accounts.
The testimony contrasts with an earlier position by the OAGF, which had maintained that the disputed council did not hold an account with the central bank. The Presidency has also alleged that Adeyemi used forged documents to mislead the OAGF into facilitating the account-opening process.
Also testifying before the committee, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation Didi Esther Walson-Jack said her office has no constitutional authority to establish federal agencies, but is responsible for approving their administrative structures.
She said the council requested approval for its organisational structure in August 2025, but the application was not approved because it lacked the necessary supporting documentation.
Walson-Jack said the council later sought approval for its staffing structure during the 2025 manpower budget process, informing her office that 14 personnel, including a director-general, were already in place and requesting approval to recruit additional staff.
The request was processed alongside those of other federal agencies and approved as part of a broader manpower exercise, authorising a total of 314 positions, including the existing staff and 300 additional roles.
However, she said officials later discovered that the legal instrument submitted by the council to justify its establishment did not contain the required features of a valid enabling document.
Walson-Jack also denied reports that her office deployed civil servants to the council or allocated office accommodation to it at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja.
At the end of the hearing, the House committee directed the CBN to submit detailed records of any financial activity connected to the council as part of its ongoing investigation.
House expects truth, not rehearsed script – Speaker
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, has inaugurated an ad hoc committee to investigate the legal basis, operations and budgetary inclusion of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), stressing that the exercise is intended to establish facts rather than fuel speculation.
Speaking during the inauguration at the National Assembly, Abbas said the committee would determine whether the council was lawfully established and whether due process was followed in its inclusion within the federal budget framework.
The panel, chaired by Rep. Yusuf Adamu Gagdi (APC, Plateau), was constituted in response to growing public concerns over the council's legal status, institutional mandate and relationship with existing government agencies.
According to the Speaker, the investigation reflects the House's commitment to transparency, accountability and effective legislative oversight.
“Today (Monday), we convene to exercise our constitutional oversight by formally inaugurating the Ad Hoc Committee to probe the existence and operations of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council and its placement within the federal budget framework,” he said.
Abbas noted that the House was responding to increasing public interest in the council, explaining that questions had been raised about its legal foundation, operational structure, funding and its inclusion in the federal budget despite uncertainty over its establishment.
“These questions deserve clear, factual and authoritative answers. The House of Representatives has therefore not constituted this committee to validate speculation or amplify controversy. Neither is this a political exercise. Our objective is simply to establish the facts,” Abbas said.
He maintained that parliamentary investigations exist to ensure that “facts prevail over rumours, evidence over conjecture and accountability over opacity.”
The Speaker outlined the committee's mandate, directing members to determine the legal basis for the council's establishment and operations, investigate the processes that led to its creation and ascertain whether those procedures complied with the Constitution and other extant laws.
He said the panel would also examine the council's mandate, governance structure, funding sources, operational activities and relationship with statutory agencies responsible for investment promotion, economic planning and public finance.
In addition, the committee will scrutinise how the council was captured in the federal budget framework, identify the approvals and budgetary procedures involved and determine whether due process was observed.
Abbas further tasked the committee with investigating possible duplication of statutory responsibilities with existing government institutions and assessing the implications for public administration, fiscal responsibility and institutional efficiency.
He urged the panel to receive memoranda from ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), constitutional bodies, experts, civil society organisations and members of the public before making recommendations on legislative or administrative reforms to strengthen transparency and accountability.
“This inquiry is not about personalities. It is about institutions and the integrity of public administration. Every public institution must derive its authority from law and exercise its responsibilities within the limits prescribed by law,” he said.
The Speaker also called on all public officials and stakeholders invited to testify before the committee to cooperate fully by providing truthful and complete information.
“This House expects the truth, not rehearsed scripts or defensive posturing. Nigerians deserve candour. They deserve explanations that withstand scrutiny. They deserve to know, with absolute certainty, that their public institutions operate within the law,” he added.
In his remarks, committee chairman Rep. Yusuf Adamu Gagdi assured Nigerians that the investigation would be conducted with fairness, professionalism and impartiality.
He said the committee would objectively examine the circumstances surrounding the alleged establishment and operations of the PFIPC, engage all relevant stakeholders, review available evidence and submit its findings and recommendations to the House.
“Our mandate is to objectively examine the circumstances surrounding the alleged establishment and operations of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, determine whether due constitutional and statutory processes were followed, engage all relevant stakeholders, carefully review the available evidence, and submit appropriate findings and recommendations to the House,” Gagdi said.
He assured that every individual and institution connected with the investigation would be accorded a fair hearing, noting that the panel's proceedings would be guided by the Constitution, due process and the principles of natural justice.
Gagdi expressed confidence that the committee's work would support informed decision-making by the House while strengthening democratic institutions and promoting the rule of law.
The committee is expected to submit its report to the House upon the conclusion of its investigation.
Meanwhile, the panel has invited several senior government officials and heads of strategic agencies to appear before it as part of the probe. Those invited include the Ministers of Budget and Economic Planning; Finance; Industry, Trade and Investment; Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation; and Foreign Affairs.
Also expected before the committee are the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Auditor-General for the Federation, Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Chairman of the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC), Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Inspector-General of Police (IGP).
ICPC Quizzes Gbajabiamila
In a related development, the ICPC has questioned the Chief of Staff to the President over his alleged link with the disputed council, following a directive to the commission by President Bola Tinubu to probe the matter within 30 days.
On Monday, Jiti Ogunye, counsel for Gbajabiamila, confirmed that his client was questioned by the ICPC.
“In full cooperation with the ICPC acting as directed by the President of Nigeria, I hereby confirm that my client, Femi Gbajabiamila, Chief of Staff to the President of Nigeria, responded to the invitation of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and appeared at about 15:00hrs on Monday, July 20, 2026, as part of the ongoing investigation into the activities of the ‘PFIPC’ fake agency, among others.”
“My client gave his testimony, responded to questions accordingly, and has returned to his duty post,” Ogunye said in a brief statement.