PFIPC scandal: Reps summon Foreign Affairs Minister, NSA

‎The House of Representatives ad-hoc committee probing the alleged establishment of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, PFIPC, has summoned the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the National Security Adviser, NSA, to explain how the council allegedly operated despite concerns over its legitimacy.

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‎This came on the heels of the submission of a memorandum by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Dunoma Ahmed, which stated that it had no official dealings with the council and had, instead, sought clarification from the NSA following the detection of irregularities in its correspondence.

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‎The ministry’s permanent secretary, while appearing before the committee on Tuesday with a letter dated July 21, 2026, disclosed that Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, who presented himself as Director-General of the Presidential Economic Advisory Council/Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, PEAC/PFIPC, approached the ministry three times seeking its collaboration and endorsement to organise a World Investment Summit in Nigeria.

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‎According to the ministry, the requests were received on June 26, 2025; August 5, 2025; and June 5, 2026, but were not acted upon.

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‎The letter read, “Guided by extant rules and regulations as well as the necessity of carrying out due diligence before obliging any request, the Ministry… did not take any action on the requests.

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‎“The Ministry’s refusal to oblige the requests was further necessitated by some of the discrepancies observed in the letters submitted by Prince Adeyemi and the ongoing investigation on the legitimacy of the PFIPC and the personality of its alleged director-general.”

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‎The ministry further revealed that it wrote to the Office of the National Security Adviser on October 16, 2025, seeking clarification on the status of Prince Adeyemi.

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‎The NSA, according to the ministry, responded on November 26, 2025, indicating that enquiries made with the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President showed that “Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Mathew is unknown to any office of the Federal Government”.

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‎The ministry also categorically informed the committee that it had no relationship with the council.

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‎“The Ministry did not participate in any diplomatic engagement or bilateral and multilateral discussions held by the PFIPC. The Ministry has never had any official interaction or engagement with the PFIPC or its alleged Director-General,” the Ministry of Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated.

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‎A committee member, Abubakar Hassan Fulata, while questioning the ministry’s response, asked why stronger measures were not taken after the ministry received confirmation that the council lacked legal recognition.

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‎“After confirming from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Office of the Chief of Staff to Mr President that this entity does not exist legally, did you communicate to the so-called Director-General… that this organisation is illegal and that you should not interact with it any further?” Fulata asked.

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‎Responding to the concerns, the committee chairman said the ministry had acted appropriately by referring the matter to the national security adviser but insisted that the security office must now account for what followed.

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