The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has commenced investigations into the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council scandal.
This is as the man at the center of the allegations, Adeniyi Adeyemi, called on President Bola Tinubu to set up a separate, independent panel to probe the matter.
The police are also set to arraign Adeyemi today before the Federal High Court in Abuja on a fresh charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/562/2025.
ICPC spokesman John Odey confirmed on Monday that the commission had taken up the case and was capable of handling it alone or in partnership with other agencies.
“The matter has been given to us. We are working on it. The capacity of the ICPC to work on its own or in collaboration with other agencies has never been in doubt,” Odey said in an interview with our correspondent on Monday.
The probe follows a directive Tinubu issued last Tuesday, ordering the ICPC to investigate the fictitious PFIPC and the alleged N1.3bn insertion into the 2026 Appropriation Bill, with a report due within 30 days.
In an open letter dated July 13, Adeyemi welcomed the directive as a positive move but argued it fell short of guaranteeing a fair and credible process, since the ICPC ultimately answers to the same arm of government implicated in the allegations.
He described the directive as “a vital first step” but argued that an investigation conducted solely by the ICPC would not sufficiently guarantee public confidence.
“I commend your recent directive tasking the ICPC with investigating the circumstances surrounding the PFIPC scandal and N1.3 billion allocation inserted into the 2026 Appropriation Bill.
“This directive is a vital first step, but the structural realities of this investigation compel me to speak out of a profound desire for absolute transparency,” he said.
Adeyemi, who is facing allegations in connection with the scandal, claimed that the existing framework would not provide him with a fair hearing.
“Under the current framework, obtaining a truly impartial hearing presents severe structural challenges.
“The public narrative emanating from official channels remains heavily weighted toward my immediate arrest, effectively overshadowing the gravity of the systemic vulnerabilities and high-level involvement I have brought to light.
