Reps Probe: Foreign Affairs Ministry Says PFIPC Not Recognised By FG

The House of Representatives ad hoc committee probing the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) has been told that the agency and its Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, are not recognised by the Federal Government.

Appearing before the panel, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Dunoma Umar Ahmed, said the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) informed the ministry in November 2025 that the PFIPC was not a legitimate government agency.

“The Office of the National Security Adviser wrote back to the ministry on November 26, 2025, indicating that the responses it received from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President revealed that Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew was unknown to any office of the Federal Government,” Ahmed said.

He explained that the ministry declined three separate requests from Adeyemi seeking collaboration to host the World Investment Summit in Nigeria in 2025 and 2026 after identifying discrepancies in his correspondence and initiating due diligence.

“The ministry did not take any action on the requests because of discrepancies observed in the letters and the ongoing investigation into the legitimacy of the PFIPC and the identity of its alleged Director-General,” he said.

Ahmed also told lawmakers that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had no official dealings with the PFIPC and never facilitated any diplomatic engagements, investment promotion activities or agreements on its behalf.

“The ministry has never had any official interaction or engagement with the PFIPC or its alleged Director-General,” he added.

Chairman of the committee, Yusuf Gagdi, questioned why no decisive action was taken after the ONSA reportedly established in November 2025 that the council was not a recognised government institution.

“What have you done as an office that has the power and capacity to carry out further investigation in respect of this matter?” Gagdi asked.

The committee subsequently summoned the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, to explain the actions taken after his office confirmed the council’s status.

It also directed the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, to appear before the panel to clarify issues arising from the ministry’s submission.

The probe follows earlier testimony by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, who denied allocating office space to the council, while the Central Bank of Nigeria disclosed that although two foreign currency accounts were opened in the agency’s name, they were never activated because the account opening process was not completed.