ICPC Seeks Sanctions Against 13 Officials Over Fake Agency (Full List)

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has recommended disciplinary action against 13 government officials over their alleged involvement in the activities of the disputed Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).

The recommendation was contained in an interim investigation report submitted to President Bola Tinubu on August 6, 2026, following an investigation into how the organisation allegedly gained access to government offices, financial systems and other privileges despite having no recognised legal basis for its existence.

The commission also recommended prosecuting Adeniyi Adeyemi, who presented himself as the Director-General of the PFIPC, over allegations of forgery, impersonation, making false statements to public officers, and misrepresenting the organisation as a legitimate federal government body.

The ICPC said its investigation established that the Federal Government never appointed Adeyemi and that there was no Act, executive order or other recognised government instrument establishing the PFIPC as a federal agency.

The 13 officials recommended for administrative sanctions are Mimi Abu, Director of the Organisation Design and Development Department at the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation; Rosemary Achem, Special Adviser on Administration to the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation; and Patricia Akhigbe, an Assistant Director at the Ministry of Budget and National Planning.

Others are Aminu Abdullahi, Schedule Officer in the Office Allocation Department of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation; Bello Abdullahi, Assistant Director, IPSAS and National Chart of Accounts at the Consolidated Account Department of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation; Sanni Olubunmi, Director of the Inspectorate Department at the OAGF; and Jousha Kadiri Luka, Director of the Consolidated Accounts Department at the OAGF.

Also listed are Muazu Balami, Deputy Director of Risk and Review in the Inspectorate Department of the OAGF; Omameh Florence, Assistant Director in the Inspectorate Department; Akinlose Moses of the Inspectorate Department; Ogaba Harry, Chief Accountant at the OAGF; Esther Orji Okoli, Principal Executive Officer I at the OAGF; and Ogunbade Habeebat Ajibola, Manager of the Compliance and Regulation Department at the National Information Technology Development Agency.

The ICPC wants the affected institutions to take appropriate disciplinary measures against the officials while also reviewing their internal procedures to prevent similar incidents in the future.

According to the investigation, Adeyemi allegedly relied on documents presented as presidential approvals and other official government instruments while attempting to establish the PFIPC as a recognised government organisation.

The documents were reportedly used in dealings with various government institutions, allowing the organisation to obtain office accommodation, pursue self-accounting status and seek access to government financial arrangements.

Several agencies were said to have processed requests connected to the PFIPC without first independently verifying whether the organisation had actually been created by the Federal Government.

The commission has therefore called for a broader investigation into the roles of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Finance in the process that allegedly gave the PFIPC and another entity known as PEAC/PFIPC an appearance of official government recognition.

The ICPC also recommended that officials and individuals linked to the suspected fake ministries, departments and agencies be invited for questioning. Investigators are expected to examine documents allegedly used to establish the organisations, as well as Unity Bank accounts connected to them.

Bank officials involved with the accounts are also expected to be questioned. Those listed for possible questioning include the managing director, chief compliance officer and relationship or account officers responsible for the accounts.

Some officials of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, including Adekunle Ajayi and Lovina Akabueze, have also been recommended for further questioning as part of the investigation.

The commission wants investigators to examine bank accounts associated with Adeyemi and trace other funds he reportedly claimed to have received as loans.

The investigation followed concerns over how the PFIPC allegedly moved through different levels of government and secured access to public facilities and financial processes without its legal status being properly verified.

One of the cases under review involved a July 29, 2025 letter from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation to the Central Bank of Nigeria requesting the creation of four domiciliary accounts for two purported government agencies, including the PFIPC.

The CBN subsequently confirmed that dollar and pound accounts had been created for the organisation.

The investigation also found that Adeyemi had sought and obtained access to office accommodation at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja. His request for office space and self-accounting status was reportedly submitted to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation in November 2024.

The ICPC said the episode revealed weaknesses in government procedures for authenticating official documents and verifying the legal status of organisations seeking access to government property, financial systems and administrative privileges.

The commission has consequently called for stronger verification procedures across government institutions to ensure that only legally established agencies can operate from government premises or gain access to public financial systems.

The Presidency has maintained that the PFIPC was not established by the Tinubu administration and that Adeyemi was never appointed to head such an organisation.

The ICPC investigation also cleared the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, of wrongdoing after he rejected the organisation and stated that it was not a genuine government body.

Adeyemi is already facing criminal proceedings in connection with the matter. The police charged him and two other defendants with eight counts involving allegations of conspiracy, forgery and impersonation.

He was arrested in July after a Federal High Court in Abuja issued a warrant following his failure to appear for a scheduled arraignment. Adeyemi has denied the allegations and is expected to defend himself in court.

Meanwhile, the investigation has uncovered another suspected fake government organisation, the National Brands Development and Made in Nigeria Special Project Office, which allegedly operated from within the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

President Tinubu subsequently ordered the suspension of three permanent secretaries and directed the arrest of George Buchi Nwabueze, identified as the alleged promoter of the organisation.

ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, said investigators found that Nwabueze allegedly operated using different versions of his name and that some individuals within the OSGF may have assisted him.

Investigators are also examining allegations that forged legislative documents were used to give the suspected organisations the appearance of legitimate government institutions and help them gain access to bank accounts and other official privileges.

The discovery of the second organisation has expanded concerns over the effectiveness of verification systems within the Federal Government and the ability of unauthorised individuals to exploit weaknesses in the public service.

The ICPC said its findings and recommendations had been forwarded for consideration and further action under the relevant laws and public service regulations, while investigations into other individuals, institutions, documents and financial transactions connected to the case continue.