The House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee investigating the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, PFIPC, has uncovered 19 documents allegedly forged* in the names of senior officials of the State House.
The Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Yusuf Adamu Gagdi, who disclosed this on Wednesday during an investigative hearing in Abuja, told lawmakers that the 19 documents were allegedly used by PFIPC to obtain legitimacy and access to government platforms.
According to him, the committee would trace the origin of the documents and determine those behind them, adding that the probe would also examine whether due process was followed in issuing PFIPC its operational code.
“We are determined to get to the root of this matter. If these documents are indeed forged, then those responsible must be held accountable,” he said.
The hearing could not proceed with the testimony of the self-acclaimed Director-General of PFIPC, Prince Adeyemi Adeniyi, on account of his continued detention.
A representative of the Inspector-General of Police, DCP Olufemi Akinola, told the committee that Adeniyi remains in custody based on a subsisting court remand order.
According to him, the police are willing to cooperate with the National Assembly but cannot act contrary to a court directive.
Replying, Gagdi said the committee respected the judiciary and would not interfere with ongoing court proceedings.
“He did not refuse to appear before this committee. The police informed us that he remains in custody by virtue of a subsisting court order. We respect the principle of separation of powers,” the chairman stated.
He added that the committee was mindful of ongoing investigations by relevant agencies, including the Nigeria Police Force, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Office of the National Security Adviser.
He emphasised that the House would not take any action capable of undermining the investigations being conducted by those institutions.
Shedding lights on the committee’s findings, Gagdi said preliminary investigations had uncovered what he described as an elaborate pattern of alleged document forgery involving materials purportedly linked to the State House.
According to him, some of the documents presented by the PFIPC referenced offices that investigators had established were not part of the Presidency’s administrative structure.
He mentioned a purported Department of Administration and Support Services under the Office of the Permanent Secretary, State House, saying the committee had found that such a department does not exist.
“Our investigation has established that this department does not exist. Yet documents bearing that office were allegedly used to obtain official recognition and process government approvals,” he said.
He added that the discovery was not limited to a single document, noting that the committee had identified 19 documents allegedly forged in the names of senior State House officials.
“It is not just one forged letter. We have uncovered 19 different documents purportedly emanating from the State House. These are serious discoveries,” he stated.
He urged Nigerians not to politicise the investigation, insisting that the committee’s conclusions would be based on evidence obtained during the exercise.
“We should not be carried away by politics or sentiments. Let us follow the facts wherever they lead,” he added.
The committee questioned the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) over the circumstances surrounding the issuance of an administrative code to the PFIPC.
Joshua Luka, former Director of the Federal Project Financial Department in the OAGF, who appeared before the panel, explained that the request for the administrative code came through a letter addressed to the Permanent Secretary, State House.
He said the correspondence was processed in line with the administrative procedure applicable at the time, adding that the Budget Office was copied only as an advance notification while the original letter was expected to reach the appropriate State House authorities for verification.
He maintained that the OAGF followed the established procedure and argued that the failure occurred because the correspondence did not eventually get to the intended office.
“The lapse was an individual one, not an institutional failure,” Luka said.
He explained that he was outside the country on an official assignment in Tanzania with the Accountant-General of the Federation when the process was ongoing.
According to Luka, had the letter reached the Permanent Secretary’s office, officials of the State House would have detected that the purported department referenced in the correspondence did not exist.
The explanation did not satisfy lawmakers.
Gagdi punctured how correspondence addressed to the Permanent Secretary, State House, eventually ended up with Prince Adeyemi Adeniyi instead of officials authorised to receive documents on behalf of the Presidency.
He argued that the alleged irregularity would have been detected earlier if the correspondence had followed the proper administrative channel.
“If the letter had reached the Permanent Secretary’s office, they would have informed you that there is no Department of Administration and Support Services in the State House. That would have exposed the fraud much earlier,” he said.
The hearing took dramatic turn when an OAGF staff member confirmed that Adeniyi personally visited the office and collected the acknowledgement copy of the letter intended for the State House.
Asked who collected the document, the official replied:
“He came to our office himself and collected it.”
The revelation prompted further questions from lawmakers, who queried why official correspondence addressed to the Permanent Secretary, State House, was released to an individual outside the Presidency.
Gagdi said government institutions must strengthen their internal control mechanisms to prevent administrative processes from being exploited by individuals seeking to create legitimacy for organisations through questionable documentation.