A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has remanded Adeniyi Adeyemi, the alleged Director-General of the purported Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), in Kuje Correctional Centre. The court gave this ruling after Adeyemi pleaded not guilty to an eight-count charge of conspiracy, forgery, and impersonation. The charges were preferred against him by the Federal Government, with the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo, appearing for the prosecution.
The case is part of a wider controversy surrounding the purported PFIPC and claims that Adeyemi presented the organisation as a presidentially-backed government body. The Presidency had denied that the council was an established government agency, while the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission was subsequently directed to investigate the activities surrounding the purported council. The ICPC later found that Adeyemi's appointment letter was fraudulent and did not originate from the Presidency.
Adeyemi had alleged that he paid N400m through a middleman as part of a larger arrangement to secure his appointment as the council's Director-General. He also accused the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, of involvement in the alleged payment arrangement, an allegation Gbajabiamila has denied. The dispute has generated a separate N15bn suit filed by Gbajabiamila against Adeyemi over alleged bribery.
The police investigation was reportedly triggered by a petition from the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President over the activities of persons allegedly forging official appointment letters. The prosecution has listed several witnesses it intends to call during the trial, including Gbajabiamila, officials of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, police officers, and civil servants. Some of the listed witnesses are alleged to have worked with Adeyemi at the purported agency.
Adeyemi has denied the allegations against him and pleaded not guilty to all eight counts. The case, marked FHC/ABJ/CR/562/2025, was initially instituted by the Nigeria Police Force against Adeyemi and two other suspects, identified in the charge as Femi and Anu, who are still at large. During his arraignment, Adeyemi pleaded not guilty to each of the counts, and the prosecution urged the court to remand him in custody.
The judge, Justice Mohammed Umar, declined to hear Adeyemi's bail application, citing the volume of cases on the court's cause list, and ordered his remand in the Kuje Correctional Centre. The matter has been adjourned until October 12, 2026, for hearing of the bail application and continuation of the substantive trial. Adeyemi's arraignment followed a previous failure to appear in court, prompting the court to issue an arrest warrant.
The prosecution alleges that Adeyemi operated the purported council from an office on the second floor of the Federal Secretariat Complex, Phase III, Abuja, and forged official documents, including an appointment letter purportedly issued by President Bola Tinubu and signed by Gbajabiamila. The trial and hearing of Adeyemi's bail application will continue on October 12.
Key points
- The Federal High Court in Abuja has remanded Adeniyi Adeyemi in Kuje Correctional Centre after he pleaded not guilty to eight counts of conspiracy, forgery, and impersonation.
- Adeyemi's case is part of a wider controversy surrounding the purported Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council and allegations of forgery and impersonation.
- The trial and hearing of Adeyemi's bail application will continue on October 12, 2026.
