Senate prefers ICPC Investigation results, Adeyemi insists Gbajabiamila's greed caused conflict

 

The Senate decided on Wednesday to wait for the results of an ongoing investigation by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Commission (ICPC) rather than look into the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) inclusion in the 2026 Appropriations Act.

Following a resolution by Senator Kawu Sumaila (APC, Kano South) requesting a probe into how the alleged agency acquired a N1.3 billion allocation in the 2026 national budget, the decision was made during plenary.

The development occurs one day after President Bola Tinubu ordered the ICPC to carry out a thorough inquiry into the operations of the purported PFIPC, which the Federal Government has insisted was never established and lacks legal support.

Sumaila contended in his plea that the dispute surrounding the purported agency had cast doubt on the legitimacy of Nigeria's appropriations and budget planning procedures.

"The presidency has taken up this matter by ordering the ICPC to thoroughly investigate how this matter came to be, as I previously stated." 

Before passing any legislation, the Senate should let the anti-graft agency finish its work, according to Barau. Additionally, I believe ICPC has begun. I think that at this point, we should obtain the ICPC report so that we can act upon it and handle it as we see fit.

 Adeniyi Matthew openly questioned the Presidency's claim that the PFIPC never existed, the debate surrounding the organization intensified.

He pointed out that the PFIPC was still included in the 2026 Appropriations Act under Budget Code 0111062001 with a N1.3 billion grant, even though the Presidency had openly disowned the organization.

"The Senate observes that the entire organization was included in the 2026 Appropriations Act under Code 0111062001 with a budgetary allocation of N1.3 billion, despite the executive's public disapproval of this agency."

In order to ascertain whether any monies had been released or spent under the budget line, he requested the Senate to look into how the budget plan was presented, examined, and approved.

In response, the session's chair, Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, stated that the Presidency has already started looking into the issue through the ICPC.

At a press conference last week, Adeyemi demanded an independent investigation into the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC), accusing Chief of Staff to the President Femi Gbajabiamila of making contradictory remarks. In relation to his alleged hiring, he also claimed that Gbajabiamila wanted money, saying the Chief of Staff collected N400 million through middlemen and asked for an extra N200 million. 

Gbajabiamila has continuously denied any involvement, and the accusations have not been proven. Adeyemi also questioned the President's contention that the PFIPC did not exist, claiming that the 2026 Appropriations Act had references to both the PFIPC and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council. This assertion has sparked calls for for further scrutiny of the budget process.

Beyond Adeyemi Adeniyi Matthew's actions, President Tinubu's order to the ICPC aims to fully investigate the circumstances surrounding the purportedly fraudulent organization.

The anti-corruption commission has been tasked with looking into allegations of presidential appointments that may have been used to secure official recognition, diplomatic support, and visa facilitation, as well as the veracity of appointment letters and other official government documents purportedly used by those responsible for the scheme.

The investigation will also look into the creation and management of bank accounts associated with the alleged agency, track the flow of any funds related to the issue, and ascertain whether public servants, financial institutions, middlemen, or private individuals were involved in any way in enabling or justifying the alleged activities.

In addition to identifying the individuals directly involved, the President instructed the ICPC to examine any flaws in government processes that would have given the purported plan legitimacy and suggest changes to stop future occurrences of this kind.

All Federal Government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies have been directed to help the inquiry by giving the commission all pertinent records, papers, and support needed to finish the probe on time.