THE House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) has revealed that several senior government officials were listed as members of the council’s purported governing board despite questions over the legality of the organisation.
News Point Nigeria reports that the committee chairman, Yusuf Gagdi, made the disclosure on Thursday during an investigative hearing where lawmakers questioned the Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Shehu Mohammed, over the approval of seven official government number plates for vehicles linked to the disputed council.
Gagdi said the officials listed as members of the PFIPC governing board included President Bola Tinubu; Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume; Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike; the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation; Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); and the Attorney-General of the Federation.
Others allegedly listed on the purported board were ministers overseeing finance, aviation, agriculture and food security, interior, budget and national planning, marine and blue economy, police affairs, transport, works and power.
The committee chairman faulted the FRSC for failing to question the authenticity of documents submitted by the council, particularly a document that allegedly listed the President and members of the Federal Executive Council as board members.
Gagdi also raised concerns that the mandate document presented by the organisation lacked official government security features, yet it was accepted by the FRSC as part of its verification process.
“We are trying to expose the leakages so that agencies can close these gaps going forward. It is not to indict anybody,” Gagdi said.
He argued that the unusual composition of the purported governing board and the nature of the documents presented should have compelled the FRSC to independently verify the claims with the Presidency and other relevant government institutions before approving the request for official number plates.
Responding to lawmakers, FRSC Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed said the agency followed its standard operating procedures throughout the application process.
Mohammed explained that the FRSC received the council’s application on April 4, 2025, alongside a reminder dated April 11, both signed by Prince Adeyemi Adeniyi.
According to him, the application was accompanied by documents claiming to establish the council, including details of its mandate, governing structure and the vehicles for which official number plates were requested.
The FRSC boss said officials also reviewed the organisation’s website, which carried a federal government domain name, and physically visited its office located at the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja.
He said the website and physical office gave the impression that the council was a legitimate government institution.
Mohammed added that the agency also verified the chassis numbers of the vehicles before approving the allocation of the official number plates.
The Corps Marshal, however, said the FRSC was surprised when it later emerged that PFIPC was not an authorised Federal Government agency.
He disclosed that the agency had commenced the process of retrieving all official number plates issued to the organisation and had strengthened its verification procedures to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
Meanwhile, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has recommended the prosecution of Adeniyi Adeyemi, the individual accused of operating the disputed PFIPC.
Adeyemi had claimed that Femi Gbajabiamila, Chief of Staff to President Tinubu, issued his appointment letter, an allegation the former Speaker of the House of Representatives has denied.
The ICPC cleared the Presidency and the Central Bank of Nigeria of any wrongdoing but identified institutional lapses in several Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
The affected institutions include the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, Budget Office and the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), among others.
The commission said the lapses created opportunities that allegedly allowed the fake council to operate and urged reforms to strengthen internal controls across government institutions.