Presidency Defends Gbajabiamila as Alleged Fake Agency Boss Faces Trial, Falana Demands Independent Probe

The Presidency has mounted a robust defence of Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, amid the ongoing prosecution of Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, the man accused of operating a fictitious government agency and forging official presidential documents.

The development has, however, sparked fresh controversy, with human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, insisting that the Presidency lacks the constitutional authority to clear anyone connected with the matter and urging an independent investigation into both Gbajabiamila and Adeyemi.

Adeyemi is currently standing trial before the Federal High Court in Abuja on an eight-count charge bordering on conspiracy, forgery and impersonation following allegations that he created and operated a non-existent government body known as the **Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).

According to the charges filed by the Nigeria Police Force, Adeyemi allegedly forged a presidential appointment letter bearing the purported signature of the Chief of Staff, impersonated the Director-General of the fictitious council and maintained 34 bank accounts in the names of agencies that do not exist.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency gave a detailed account of the investigation and prosecution while cautioning politicians against using the case to attack Gbajabiamila.

The statement disclosed that Adeyemi was arrested on October 27, 2025, at his office inside the Federal Secretariat Complex, Abuja, after Gbajabiamila petitioned both the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police over what he described as an elaborate scheme involving forged documents and impersonation.

According to the Presidency, the police subsequently arraigned Adeyemi and two alleged accomplices, identified only as Femi and Anu, who remain at large, before the Federal High Court on November 27, 2025.

Among the charges is an allegation that Adeyemi forged an official appointment letter purportedly issued by President Bola Tinubu and signed by the Chief of Staff.

Count Two of the charge reads: “That you, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Mathew, forged an appointment letter purported to have been issued by His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, and signed by the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila.”

Count Five further alleges: “That you falsely personate as the Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council.”

The Presidency said investigations began after officials of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) complained that another organisation appeared to be carrying out functions similar to those assigned to the commission.

The matter reportedly gained greater urgency after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs raised concerns over an event hosted by Adeyemi involving foreign diplomats at the Wells Carlton Hotel in Abuja without the ministry’s knowledge or approval.

In correspondence dated October 15, 2025, the ministry warned: “This act contravenes extant rules and regulations guiding diplomatic practices globally.”

The Presidency further explained that the Office of the National Security Adviser and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation later sought clarification over the alleged appointment, while Gbajabiamila separately denied ever authorising it.

In his petition to security agencies, the Chief of Staff wrote:

“The attention of this office has been drawn to the activities of certain individuals and groups engaged in the forgery of official appointment letters purportedly issued from my office.

“The fake documents, bearing falsified signatures, reference and folio numbers, and seals, have been used to claim leadership appointments to non-existent entities, with particular reference to the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council.”

He continued: “They have been parading themselves as a legitimate government agency, hosting meetings with both foreigners and Nigerian citizens, and even going so far as to request a Note Verbale from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United States of America to facilitate visas for some of their staff.

“The above development not only constitutes a serious criminal act but also undermines the integrity of the Presidency and the credibility of official government communication.”

Police investigators alleged that searches conducted at Adeyemi’s office and residence uncovered forged appointment letters, official letterheads, correspondence addressed to government agencies and other materials allegedly used to give legitimacy to the organisation.

The investigation also claimed that Adeyemi operated 34 bank accounts, including several allegedly opened in the names of fictitious government institutions, and fraudulently secured a Central Bank of Nigeria account using forged documents.

Although the Presidency maintained that no government funds were transferred into the account, the police described the alleged conduct as “a deliberate attempt to infiltrate official financial systems for potential diversion of government funds, money laundering and other financial crimes” and recommended that all identified accounts be frozen pending the conclusion of the criminal proceedings.

Investigators further alleged that Adeyemi told police one Dolapo Babatunde Tanimola assisted him in obtaining the forged appointment letter. However, when officers attempted to locate Tanimola, they discovered he had died in a hotel fire in Abuja days before Adeyemi’s arrest.

According to the Presidency, the police confirmed Tanimola’s death through his relatives, hospital records, the hotel management and church burial records.

The Presidency also alleged that Adeyemi had been involved in similar controversies in the past, recalling that he had previously presented himself as an ambassador and leader of the World Youth Organisation, an entity the United Nations later denied having any affiliation with.

Quoting the police investigation report, the statement said: “The act of the suspect constitutes criminal forgery, impersonation and obtaining by false pretence, thereby bringing the office of the Chief of Staff to the President and the Presidency to disrepute before the public and international community.”

Onanuga urged members of the public not to jump to conclusions, stating: “Politicians and members of the public who are weaponising Adeyemi’s claim against the Chief of Staff should refrain from swallowing his narrative hook, line and sinker. They are advised to await the trial of Adeyemi and his accomplices, as well as the court’s judgement.”

Meanwhile, Falana argued that only law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies—not the Presidency—could determine the culpability or innocence of those involved.

He said: “The Presidency is not in a position to clear anybody. It is the duty of the police and anti-graft agencies to investigate cases of official corruption.

“The Presidency can only refer Femi Gbajabiamila, as well as the other individual, to the ICPC because allegations of fraud and corruption have been raised.”

The senior advocate also questioned how an agency alleged to be fictitious appeared to have financial provisions within government records.

He stated: “The government will have to explain to Nigerians how a whopping sum of N24bn was budgeted for an unknown agency, as well as how that agency had accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria.”

Adeyemi, who addressed journalists on Thursday, denied wrongdoing and levelled fresh allegations against the Chief of Staff.

He claimed: “The major rationale behind the disagreement between myself and the chief of staff is that he allegedly requested 48 per cent of the take-off grant (N27,395,510,136) from the same agency, which he denies, which I rejected after he collected a total sum of 400m by proxy, with a remaining balance of N200m to secure the said appointment.”**

Adeyemi further argued that if the PFIPC did not exist, the government should explain why references to it allegedly appeared in the 2026 Appropriation Act. He appealed to President Tinubu to establish an independent panel to investigate the disputed agencies, examine the circumstances surrounding Tanimola’s death, review official records and budgetary allocations, investigate his allegations and make its findings public.

He also called on Gbajabiamila to temporarily step aside to allow what he described as an impartial investigation.

The Presidency’s latest statement marks the second time in recent weeks that it has publicly distanced itself from Adeyemi and the alleged agency, maintaining that neither the council nor appointments purportedly made under it has any legal recognition under the Tinubu administration.