President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the activities of the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) and submit its report within 30 days.
The directive was announced in a statement issued on Tuesday by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
According to the Presidency, the PFIPC is not a legally recognised government body, stating that it was never established by the Federal Government and has no legal backing, presidential approval or executive authorisation.
The statement alleged that one Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew falsely presented himself as the Director-General of the organisation and claimed to be a presidential appointee.
President Tinubu instructed the ICPC to investigate the alleged forgery of appointment letters and official government documents, the use of a false presidential appointment to secure official recognition and diplomatic support, including visa facilitation, as well as the opening of bank accounts in the names of purported government agencies using forged documents.
The investigation will also examine the origin and use of the alleged fake documents, the movement of funds linked to the scheme, and the involvement of any public officials, private individuals, financial institutions or other entities that may have facilitated the activities.
In addition, the President directed the commission to determine how the organisation gained an appearance of legitimacy, identify institutional loopholes that may have been exploited, and recommend measures to prevent similar incidents.
All federal ministries, departments and agencies have been directed to cooperate fully with the ICPC by providing relevant records and information required for the investigation.
Tinubu stressed that the integrity of the Presidency and federal institutions must be protected from impersonation, forgery and abuse of official identity, adding that anyone found culpable should face the full weight of the law.
