The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has uncovered the identities of civil servants who allegedly helped Adeniyi Adeyemi, the director-general of the now-disowned Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), obtain government approvals and access official financial and administrative systems.
The findings are contained in the ICPC’s interim investigation report on the PFIPC saga, which revealed that Adeyemi allegedly penetrated government structures using forged documents and the assistance of officials in several institutions who processed requests and facilitated approvals despite procedural gaps.
Adeyemi began seeking formal government recognition 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 submitted purported official documents, including an appointment letter, an establishment instrument and a letter on State House letterhead allegedly signed by Akanbi Adewale.
However, ICPC investigators found that Akanbi Adewale did not exist, while forensic examination showed that the letter attributed to him was actually signed by Adeyemi.
The investigation also identified three civil servants allegedly involved in securing an authorised establishment and recruitment waiver for the PFIPC: 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, Achem introduced Akhigbe to Abu as the PFIPC’s head of human resources, although Akhigbe was an assistant director in the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning. The trio subsequently facilitated the council’s purported application for authorised establishment and recruitment waiver through the OHCSF.
The agency found that Adeyemi paid Akhigbe ₦500,000 during Easter in 2025 as a “thank you for your support.” The authorised establishment was reportedly granted on the same day the three officials met.
Investigators found no evidence that the PFIPC had formally applied for the establishment and recruitment waiver. Instead, the approvals were allegedly facilitated outside the required procedure using forged establishment instruments and a forged appointment letter presented by Achem and Akhigbe.
Abu’s role came under scrutiny because her department handles authorised establishment, manpower requirements and recruitment waivers for federal government organisations. She oversees units responsible for establishment and workforce planning, organisation design, job design and development, as well as rules and regulations.
During questioning, Abu reportedly described Adeyemi’s controversial appointment letter, allegedly issued by the Chief of Staff to the President, as an “aberration”, saying she could not recall another government organisation presenting an appointment letter signed by the Chief of Staff.
The ICPC also investigated Aminu Abdullahi, an official responsible for coordinating office allocation to political appointees within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF).
Investigators found that Deputy Director in General Services, Ibrahim Abdulkadir, introduced Abdullahi to Adeyemi in March 2025 to guide him through the process of securing office accommodation at the Federal Secretariat after a request allegedly made on behalf of the PFIPC to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) failed to yield the expected outcome.
According to the report, Abdullahi allocated offices previously occupied by former Chief Economic Adviser to the President, Doyin Salami, at the Federal Secretariat Phase III for temporary use by the PFIPC without written approval.
An analysis of Abdullahi’s bank statement further showed that he allegedly received ₦3.25 million from Adeyemi in three instalments between March and November 2025.
The ICPC’s findings have therefore raised concerns over how a purported government body allegedly used forged documents and the assistance of public officials to gain access to government structures, approvals, offices and financial systems despite not completing the required processes.
Source: Premium Times