ICPC exposed how senior officials in the federal civil service helped the organisation obtain administrative approvals and gain access to government financial systems despite its questionable legal status.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered how some civil servants allegedly helped Adeniyi Adeyemi, the director-general of the now-disowned Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), to obtain government approvals and gain access to official financial and administrative systems.
The investigation shows that the purported agency’s ability to penetrate government structures went beyond the forged documents allegedly presented by Mr Adeyemi. It also depended on the actions of officials in several government institutions who processed its requests and facilitated approvals despite gaps in the required procedures.
According to the ICPC, Mr Adeyemi began seeking formal recognition within government structures in November 2024 when he approached the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) for an administrative code, self-accounting status and approval to open accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
He supported the applications with purported official documents, including an appointment letter, an establishment instrument, and a letter on State House letterhead allegedly signed by one Akanbi Adewale.
Investigators found that Akanbi Adewale did not exist. Forensic examination also showed that the letter attributed to him was signed by Mr Adeyemi.
Despite these irregularities, the documents were used to process the applications.
On 27 May 2025, the OAGF granted the organisation self-accounting status and assigned it the administrative code 0111062001, alongside authorised establishment and recruitment waiver arrangements.
The approvals enabled the purported PFIPC to secure a place in the 2026 federal budget and gain access to government financial systems.
The OAGF subsequently created a Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) platform and a Sub-Treasury Account for the organisation.
Acting on a request from the PFIPC, the OAGF also issued a mandate to the CBN for the creation of two domiciliary accounts.
The CBN later told the House of Representatives that the accounts were never activated because the purported agency failed to provide authorised signatories.
PREMIUM TIMES previously reported how Mr Adeyemi’s purported agency penetrated several layers of government despite having no legal basis for its existence. Correspondence from the organisation was treated as genuine by government institutions, helping it secure an office at the Federal Secretariat, budgetary recognition and access to government financial systems.
The ICPC investigation examined the roles of three civil servants in securing an authorised establishment and recruitment waiver for the PFIPC. They are Rose Achem, senior administrative officer to the director-general of the Budget Office of the Federation; Patricia Akhigbe, an assistant director in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning; and Mimi Abu, director of organisation design and development at the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF).
According to the ICPC, Ms Achem introduced Ms Akhigbe to Ms Abu as the head of human resources of the PFIPC, even though Ms Akhigbe was an assistant director in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning.
Investigators said the introduction was made to facilitate the purported council’s application for authorised establishment and recruitment waiver.
The ICPC found that Ms Achem, Ms Akhigbe and Ms Abu subsequently facilitated the approvals through the OHCSF.
The investigation also found that Mr Adeyemi paid Ms Akhigbe N500,000 during Easter in 2025. The payment was described in the evidence as a “thank you for your support.”
The authorised establishment was granted on the same day the three officials met, according to the ICPC.
Investigators found no evidence that the PFIPC had formally applied for an authorised establishment and recruitment waiver. Instead, Ms Abu, Ms Achem and Ms Akhigbe proceeded with the approvals outside the required process.
When investigators requested the relevant file from the OHCSF, the office reportedly said it was missing.
The ICPC examined Ms Abu’s role because her department is responsible for authorised establishment, manpower requirements and recruitment waivers for federal government organisations.
The commission said Ms Abu oversees four units responsible for establishment and workforce planning, organisation design, job design and development, and rules and regulations.
Under the standard procedure, newly established government organisations seeking authorisation are expected to submit documents showing their mandate and establishment instruments, as well as the appointment letter of the head of the organisation.
The investigation found that Ms Achem and Ms Akhigbe met Ms Abu on behalf of the PFIPC and presented what investigators described as forged establishment instruments and a forged appointment letter for Mr Adeyemi.
Ms Abu reportedly described the controversial appointment letter, said to have been issued by the Chief of Staff to the President, as an “aberration”. She told investigators she could not recall another government organisation presenting an appointment letter signed by the Chief of Staff.
When the PFIPC could not upload the required documents through the OHCSF portal, its representatives submitted physical copies of the controversial appointment letter and the organisation’s purported enabling instruments.
The ICPC also found that although the PFIPC requested the deployment of staff in a letter dated 9 May 2025, the OHCSF neither approved nor effected any deployment. Evidence from the Enterprise Content Management System showed that no officers were deployed to the PFIPC by the OHCSF.
The ICPC also examined the role of Aminu Abdullahi, the official responsible for office allocation within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF).
Mr Abdullahi was responsible for coordinating the allocation of offices to political appointees within the OSGF. Requests for office allocation are submitted to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, processed through the Permanent Secretary, General Services Office, and subsequently referred to the Director, General Services, for necessary action.
