The Managing Director of Divine Dopacy Nigeria Limited, Gbenga Collins, on Tuesday told the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee investigating the alleged operations of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) that he paid N400 million to the council’s purported Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, after allegedly being promised a contract to renovate and furnish an official residence.

Collins made the disclosure while testifying before the committee chaired by Rep. Yusuf Gagdi (APC, Plateau), which is probing allegations of impersonation, forgery, financial impropriety and the unlawful use of government facilities by the purported council.

The businessman said he believed the PFIPC was a genuine Federal Government agency because Adeyemi operated from an office at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja, travelled with security personnel and official vehicles bearing government number plates, and received prominent visitors in what appeared to be an authentic government office.

According to Collins, he first met Adeyemi during a programme in Ogbomoso in December 2024 before being invited to Abuja in early 2025 to discuss a business opportunity.

He said an official vehicle picked him up from the airport and conveyed him to Adeyemi’s office at the Federal Secretariat, where the setting convinced him he was dealing with a legitimate government official.

Collins testified that Adeyemi later offered his company a contract to renovate and furnish what was presented as the official residence of the PFIPC Director-General and personally took him to inspect the property.

He told lawmakers that after receiving a contract award letter, scope of work and agreement, Adeyemi demanded N400 million as proof of financial capacity and to facilitate mobilisation for the project.

According to him, he raised the money from business associates and paid the sum in five instalments between May and July 2025.

He said N380 million was transferred into a Guaranty Trust Bank account belonging to World Entrepreneurs Limited, while the remaining N20 million was paid into an Access Bank account belonging to Sunshine Confectionery and Catering Services.

Collins said Adeyemi repeatedly assured him that mobilisation for the project would begin in August 2025, but the promise never materialised.

He added that subsequent explanations centred on security concerns before communication with Adeyemi eventually ceased.

“My lawyer was the first person who told me that I had been scammed,” Collins told the committee.

The businessman said his lawyer petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in November 2025, adding that investigators informed him Adeyemi repeatedly failed to honour invitations from the anti-graft agency.

Appealing to lawmakers, Collins said the alleged fraud had crippled his business, forced him to sell personal assets and left him indebted to associates who contributed to raising the N400 million.

When asked whether the payment amounted to a bribe, Collins rejected the suggestion, insisting it was presented as a prerequisite for facilitating and mobilising the contract.

He, however, admitted that he did not comply with the Public Procurement Act or follow any formal procurement process before accepting the purported contract.

During the hearing, lawmakers also questioned how vehicles linked to the purported council obtained official Federal Government registration number plates.

The committee subsequently summoned the Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Shehu Mohammed, to appear before it on Thursday to explain the process for issuing official government number plates and clarify how the vehicles allegedly acquired them.

Addressing concerns over Adeyemi’s absence from the hearing, Committee Chairman Yusuf Gagdi said the suspect remains in police custody under a subsisting court order, stressing that the National Assembly would not violate the constitutional principle of separation of powers.

He disclosed that the committee would instead question Adeyemi at an undisclosed date and location, in the presence of his lawyers and police officers, to avoid compromising ongoing investigations by the EFCC, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) and other security agencies.

According to Gagdi, the committee’s priority is to obtain clarifications from the suspect while ensuring its actions do not interfere with ongoing criminal investigations or judicial proceedings.