Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has told the House of Representatives that it never approved any request by the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) to organise a World Investment Summit, distancing itself completely from the disputed body.
According to TheCable, the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Umar Ahmed, made the disclosure on Tuesday while appearing before the House ad hoc committee investigating the PFIPC controversy and the N1.3 billion allocated to the council in the 2026 Appropriation Act.
Ahmed, who represented Foreign Affairs Minister Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, said the ministry received three requests from Adeniyi Adeyemi, who presented himself as PFIPC’s director-general, seeking collaboration and endorsement for the proposed summit. The requests were submitted on June 26, 2025, August 5, 2025, and June 5, 2026.
He said the ministry declined to act on the requests after carrying out due diligence and identifying discrepancies in the documents submitted.
Ahmed disclosed that the ministry also sought clarification from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) in October 2025 regarding Adeyemi and the PFIPC. He said the ONSA later informed the ministry that enquiries with the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President showed Adeyemi was unknown to any federal government office.
The permanent secretary stressed that the ministry had no official dealings with the PFIPC, adding that it did not participate in any diplomatic engagements, facilitate foreign investors, sign agreements, or direct Nigerian missions to work with the council.
The PFIPC controversy has drawn national attention following allegations that Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, appointed Adeyemi as the council’s director-general. Gbajabiamila has denied the claim, while the Presidency said the appointment letter bearing his signature was forged.
Adeyemi was arrested by police operatives in Osun State on July 14, while the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) questioned Gbajabiamila on Monday as part of its investigation.
On the same day, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation Esther Walson-Jack told lawmakers that the office space occupied by the PFIPC at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja was originally allocated to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
