PFIPC probe: State House disowns agency, FRSC explains vehicle registration

The House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee investigating the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) on Thursday uncovered fresh details about the controversial agency during a hearing at the National Assembly in Abuja.

The committee heard from officials of the State House and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) as lawmakers continued efforts to determine how the organisation operated despite lacking legal backing.

The investigation is focused on how the PFIPC allegedly gained official recognition, obtained government approvals and found its way into parts of the 2026 Appropriation Act even though there is no law establishing it.

Representing the Permanent Secretary of the State House, Director of Administration Abdulkadri Idris told the committee that the Presidency had no role in creating the council and never asked the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation to issue a budget code for it. He said the State House only became aware of the council after reports about it surfaced in the media.

Idris also informed lawmakers that the Presidency has no constitutional responsibility to establish government agencies. He dismissed documents presented before the committee as fake, saying they contained the name of an official who never worked in the State House and referred to a department that does not exist.

To support its position, the State House submitted official records, including a list of Directors of Administration from 2003 to date and genuine letterhead samples that had earlier been provided to the Nigeria Police National Cybercrime Centre for investigation.

Following the presentation, committee chairman Yusuf Gagdi said the evidence exposed clear differences between documents obtained from the Accountant-General’s Office and the authentic records supplied by the State House. He said the discrepancies would help lawmakers understand how government procedures were allegedly manipulated to give the agency an appearance of legitimacy.

The State House also denied issuing any appointment letter to Adeniyi Adeyemi, who claimed to be the Director-General of the council. Officials explained that appointments of heads of federal agencies are processed through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation after presidential approval.

The FRSC also appeared before the committee to explain why it issued seven official government number plates to the PFIPC. Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed, through a memorandum submitted to lawmakers, said the agency followed its normal procedures after receiving documents and other materials from the applicant.

According to the FRSC, the application was submitted in April 2025 by Adeniyi Adeyemi, who claimed to be acting on behalf of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council and the PFIPC. The request was supported with documents describing the council’s activities and listing vehicles for registration.

The Corps said it carried out further checks because the council claimed to be a newly created federal agency. Officials reviewed the documents, visited the office being used by the organisation, checked its government-domain website and verified the vehicles before approving the request.

The registered vehicles included a bulletproof Lexus LX, two Toyota Land Cruiser SUVs and four Toyota Hilux vehicles, all of which received official government number plates.

The FRSC, however, said it later discovered that the PFIPC was not a recognised government agency and that the information supplied during the application process was false. It added that steps have begun to recover all the number plates issued to the organisation while internal procedures have been strengthened to prevent a similar incident.

During the hearing, lawmakers questioned the quality of the verification process after observing that some of the submitted documents lacked normal government security features and contained unusual details about the council’s membership. The FRSC admitted the documents appeared questionable in hindsight but maintained that it acted based on the information available at the time.

The committee directed the FRSC to provide details on the current location and status of all vehicles registered under the PFIPC. Lawmakers also announced that the investigation would continue next week, when all remaining agencies connected to the matter are expected to appear before the panel.

The House began the investigation after allegations emerged that the PFIPC operated as a federal agency without legal approval, secured official documents and became part of government administrative processes. Lawmakers say the inquiry is aimed at identifying those responsible and preventing similar cases in the future.