PFIPC scandal: How ‘fake’ DG deceived me with Presidency letterhead — Deputy Reps speaker

Benjamin Kalu, deputy speaker of the house of representatives, has revealed how he was deceived into granting a meeting to Adeniyi Adeyemi, the director-general of the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), after receiving what appeared to be an official communication from the presidency.

Kalu made the disclosure on Wednesday during plenary while supporting a motion calling for an investigation into the activities of the alleged council.

According to him, the letter, dated May 2, 2025, bore the Presidency’s insignia and appeared authentic.

” the 2nd of May, 2025, my office got a letter. That letter had the Presidency on top of the letterhead. It had the Office of the Director General, the Presidential Economic Advisory Council and the Presidential OnForeign Intervention Promotion Council. Two councils under one DG,” Kalu said.

He explained that although some details in the letter appeared questionable, the document also contained information that gave it credibility.

“When I saw this, I looked down at the letterhead. I saw the Federal Secretariat Complex, Phase 3, 2nd Floor, Central Business District. I also saw the website, pfipc.gov.ng. It was a bit confusing for me. Some of the information looked credible, some did not,” he said.

The Deputy Speaker said he directed members of his team to verify the address before approving the meeting.

“I sent my team to go and verify the existence of this organisation at the said address. They came back confirming that this organisation was in the said location. I then gave approval for them to come and have the interaction they had written for,” he added.

Kalu said the group had claimed it wanted to discuss the ongoing constitutional amendment process, economic governance, legislative priorities and ways to promote foreign investment.

However, he said the meeting took a different direction.

“When they came and started engaging, the issues they mentioned in the letter were not what they engaged on. They did not talk about the Constitution that we were amending. They were more about photo taking,” he said.

The lawmaker noted that the incident underscored the need for greater vigilance, saying official-looking documents could no longer be taken as proof of legitimacy.

“This goes on to show that a beautiful letterhead that has the Presidency is no longer confirmation that an agency is legal. It goes to show that an address that shows Federal Secretariat does not mean that that particular agency is legal,” Kalu stated.

He urged lawmakers to support the investigation, stressing that it was the responsibility of the National Assembly to ensure transparency and accountability.

The alleged PFIPC came under scrutiny after it was listed as a beneficiary in the 2026 Appropriation Act despite the Presidency maintaining that no such agency exists under the Federal Government.

Following the controversy, the Presidency distanced itself from the council, while President Bola Tinubu directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission to investigate how the organisation found its way into the 2026 budget and ensure those responsible are prosecuted if found culpable.