48 Hours to Tinubu’s Deadline: All Eyes on ICPC’s PFIPC Probe

With less than 48 hours remaining before President Bola Tinubu’s deadline expires, attention is turning to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) as it prepares to submit its report on the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).

The 30-day investigation, ordered by the President on July 7, followed the Presidency’s declaration that the PFIPC was a fictitious organisation with no legal backing or official recognition from the Federal Government.

According to the Presidency, the alleged council was never created through any law, executive order or presidential approval. Despite this, its self-proclaimed Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, allegedly presented himself as a presidential appointee while using forged government documents to seek official recognition, diplomatic support and visa facilitation.

Scope of the Investigation

President Tinubu directed the ICPC to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the matter, including:

Alleged use of forged appointment letters and official documents.
Creation and operation of bank accounts in the names of fake government agencies.
Individuals and institutions that may have assisted the alleged scheme.
Sources and movement of funds linked to the council.
Weaknesses within government institutions that allowed the alleged fraud to thrive.

The President also instructed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to cooperate fully with investigators, stressing that anyone found culpable should face the full weight of the law.

Adeyemi Calls for Independent Probe

Before his arrest in Osun State, Adeyemi welcomed the investigation but questioned whether the ICPC could conduct an impartial probe.

He called on President Tinubu to establish an independent investigative panel, arguing that some senior government officials had already been publicly cleared before the investigation was concluded.

Through his lawyer, Festus Akhigbe, Adeyemi also maintained that multiple government institutions interacted with the council over an extended period, making it difficult to believe that one individual could have deceived the entire government machinery.

His legal team alleged that agencies including the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Office of the Accountant-General, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service, and even the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) processed documents or recognised aspects of the council’s operations before the controversy emerged.

According to the defence, these developments suggest broader administrative failures rather than the actions of a single individual.

House of Representatives Also Investigating

The House of Representatives has launched a separate investigation into the matter.

During one of its hearings, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack, acknowledged that her office failed to conduct adequate due diligence before approving recruitment requests linked to the controversial council.

Will the Report Trigger Accountability?

With the submission deadline now just days away, expectations are growing over whether the ICPC’s findings will lead to prosecutions or expose wider institutional lapses.

The key question remains whether the investigation will result in meaningful accountability—or join the long list of high-profile probes that generated headlines but produced little consequence.

The ICPC is expected to submit its report to President Tinubu within the stipulated deadline, after which the Federal Government is expected to determine its next course of action.