The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has exonerated the Presidency from any involvement in the creation of the purported Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) or the appointment of its alleged Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi, declaring that the documents used to establish the agency were forged.

ICPC Chairman, Dr. Musa Adamu Aliyu, disclosed this on Thursday after presenting the commission’s interim investigation report to President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

According to Aliyu, investigations revealed that the appointment letter presented by Adeyemi was fake and did not originate from the State House.

“The investigation established that Adeyemi was never appointed by the Federal Government or any lawful authority, and the PFIPC was never established by any law, executive order or other valid instrument of government,” he said.

The ICPC also uncovered two additional fictitious government agencies allegedly created by Adeyemi: the FCT Investment Promotion Agency (FIPA) and the Foreign Investment Promotion Agency and Public-Private Partnership (FIPA-PPP).

Aliyu said Adeyemi appropriated the identity of the defunct Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC), illegally occupied its office and used forged government documents to operate the fake agency. Investigators also found that the office was unlawfully accessed after its locks were broken.

President Tinubu had on July 7 directed the ICPC to investigate the activities of the PFIPC and submit its findings within 30 days.

The commission further stated that no federal funds were approved or disbursed to the purported council, although weaknesses in verification processes and inter-agency oversight enabled it to gain official recognition.

“Our investigation found that weaknesses in verification, inter-agency oversight and government processes were exploited by Adeyemi with some level of negligence,” Aliyu said.

Meanwhile, the State House also distanced itself from the PFIPC during a hearing before the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee investigating the matter.

Representing the Permanent Secretary, State House Director of Administration, Abdulkadir Idris, told lawmakers that the Presidency neither created the council nor initiated any correspondence requesting budgetary provisions for it.

He described documents purportedly issued by the State House as forged, insisting that neither the alleged signatory nor the office referenced in the letters existed within the Presidency.

Similarly, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) admitted issuing seven official government number plates to the PFIPC after verifying documents it believed were authentic. Corps Marshal Shehu Mohammed said the agency has begun retrieving the number plates and strengthening its verification procedures to prevent similar incidents.

The House committee has adjourned proceedings until next Wednesday for a joint hearing involving all relevant government agencies to reconcile discrepancies in the documentary evidence. However, uncertainty remains over when Adeyemi, who is in police custody under a court remand order, will appear before the panel.

Meanwhile, the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has called for sanctions against all public officials whose actions or negligence enabled the operations of the fake council, arguing that accountability should extend beyond the prosecution of Adeyemi alone.

Adeyemi’s legal team and family have also opposed reported attempts by lawmakers to question him in custody without his lawyers present, insisting any interrogation should be conducted publicly to ensure transparency.