The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation AGF has said no public funds or salaries have been paid to the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).
The clarification was made on Monday by the AGF’s Director of Public Relations, Bawa Mokwa, following earlier statements by the Presidency distancing itself from the council and its convener, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi.
On 11 June, President Bola Tinubu’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, described the PFIPC and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC) as fictitious entities, stating that neither organisation had been established by his office or authorised to operate. He also described Adeyemi as an impostor facing criminal prosecution.
On 1 July, presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga alleged that Adeyemi used forged documents to fraudulently secure the opening of a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) account by misleading the OAGF.
“The Police found that Adeyemi, using the fake documents he created, fraudulently opened a CBN account by misleading the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation. According to the police, no government money has been transferred into the account,” Onanuga said.
Adeyemi subsequently rejected the allegations and, in response to Gbajabiamila’s earlier disclaimer, alleged that the Chief of Staff received N400 million through a proxy to facilitate his appointment.
Responding to questions about the account, Mokwa said the process of opening a CBN account for the PFIPC was never completed because the documentation required to activate it was not submitted.
“You cannot open an account at the CBN without authorisation from the Accountant-General. The Accountant-General will authorise them to open an account at the CBN,” he said.
However, an earlier PREMIUM TIMES report showed that the OAGF wrote to the CBN on 29 July 2025 requesting the opening of four domiciliary accounts for two government entities—the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the PFIPC. The CBN subsequently informed the OAGF on 13 August 2025 that it had opened dollar- and pound-denominated accounts for the PFIPC.
Explaining the circumstances, Mokwa said Adeyemi presented an appointment letter to the OAGF, but alleged that the document related to an existing government agency rather than the PFIPC.
He said the account-opening process began based on the document presented but was never completed because the names of authorised account signatories were not submitted.
According to Mokwa, the PFIPC has no operational account through which government funds could be disbursed.
“The account, till today, has not seen the light of day. It has not seen one kobo because the account is not completely operational.
“That portrays that he has not collected a dime. The AGF has not released a dime to him because they don’t even have a place where the money can be paid,” he said.
Mokwa also dismissed reports that the Federal Government had funded the council following media reports that it received approval in August 2025 to recruit 300 members of staff.
He maintained that the PFIPC had received no budgetary allocation, noting that any government funding for the council would have to be included in the 2026 budget before funds could be released.
The OAGF spokesperson also denied reports that salaries had been paid to employees of the organisation, saying no staff had been recruited through the procedures required for federal establishments.
“Based on our knowledge, he has not employed anybody,” he said.
Mokwa explained that before any federal agency can recruit staff and place them on the government payroll, it must obtain approvals from the Federal Character Commission, the Budget Office and the Federal Civil Service Commission. Only after those approvals are secured can employees be enrolled on the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System through the OAGF.
“If they give you a waiver for 200 people, you take the waiver to these agencies and then present the papers to the Accountant-General.
“He cannot capture even one name without those approvals because once they are captured, payment will come from the budget,” Mokwa said.
He added that none of those processes had been completed in the case of the PFIPC.
