Gbajabiamila didn’t appoint Adeyemi NIPC DG, he’s an impostor – Presidency

By Kazeem Ugbodaga

The Presidency on Wednesday dismissed claims by one Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew that he was appointed to head a presidential agency, describing him as an impostor who allegedly forged official documents, impersonated government officials and operated a fictitious organisation to deceive public institutions, foreign diplomats and unsuspecting Nigerians.

In a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency said investigations by security agencies had exposed what it described as an elaborate scheme involving forged appointment letters, fake government agencies and multiple bank accounts allegedly used to lend credibility to the operation.

The statement was issued in response to renewed public interest surrounding Adeyemi, who has been presenting himself as the Director-General of the non-existent Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, also referred to as the Presidential Economic Advisory Council.

According to Onanuga, the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President first raised the alarm after officials of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) complained that another entity claiming to be a federal agency was operating at cross-purposes with it.

He said the Chief of Staff, on October 17, 2025, petitioned the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force, requesting an investigation into individuals allegedly forging appointment letters purportedly issued from his office.

“The attention of this office has been drawn to the activities of certain individuals and groups engaged in the forgery of official appointment letters purportedly issued from my office,” the Chief of Staff wrote in the petition.

According to the Presidency, the petition alleged that the fake documents, complete with forged signatures, official seals and reference numbers, were used to install Adeyemi as Director-General of a non-existent agency that operated from an office within the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja.

Onanuga said the impostors also hosted meetings with foreign diplomats and Nigerian officials and even sought a diplomatic note verbale from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to facilitate United States visas for their purported staff.

He noted that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had independently questioned the legitimacy of the agency after Adeyemi convened a meeting with ambassadors in Abuja without the ministry’s knowledge or approval.

According to the statement, subsequent correspondence among the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) and the Office of the Chief of Staff consistently established that no such agency existed and that Adeyemi had never received any presidential appointment.

“The Chief of Staff could not have issued a letter of appointment to a non-existent agency. Moreover, the Chief of Staff does not make appointments or write letters, as these are the exclusive preserve of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation,” Onanuga stated.

The Presidency disclosed that police investigators arrested Adeyemi on October 27, 2025, at the Abuja office from where he allegedly operated the fraudulent organisation.

Searches conducted at his office and residence in Suleja reportedly yielded forged appointment letters and other incriminating documents.

According to Onanuga, police investigations established that Adeyemi forged official documents, falsely presented himself as a presidential appointee and fraudulently requested diplomatic support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The statement further alleged that investigators uncovered 34 bank accounts, including nine opened in the names of fictitious government agencies, and discovered that Adeyemi had also opened a Central Bank of Nigeria account by allegedly misleading the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.

The Presidency, however, noted that investigators confirmed no government funds were paid into the account.

Quoting the police investigation report, Onanuga said: “The act of the suspect constitutes criminal forgery, impersonation and obtaining by false pretence, thereby bringing the office of the Chief of Staff to the President and the Presidency to disrepute before the public and international community.”

He disclosed that the police subsequently filed an eight-count charge before the Federal High Court in Abuja against Adeyemi and two alleged accomplices on November 27, 2025, with the matter scheduled for hearing on July 27.

The Presidency also alleged that Adeyemi had a history of falsely claiming public positions, recalling that in 2016 he presented himself as President-General of the World Youth Organisation, which he claimed was affiliated with the United Nations, before the UN denied the existence of such an organisation.

Onanuga urged politicians and members of the public not to rely on Adeyemi’s claims or use them to attack the Office of the Chief of Staff, stressing that the matter is already before the court.

He advised interested parties to allow the judicial process to run its course rather than speculate on issues that are now sub judice.

But in a recent press statement, Prince Adeyemi had rejected an earlier disclaimer from the Chief of Staff as he demanded transparency. “The issue is no longer about personalities. It is about contradictions that demand answers,” he stated.

He questioned how the council could appear in the national budget if it did not exist. “Let’s assume for one second that all what the chief of staff published were right, that the agency does not exist. Then how did the agency’s name get into the 2026 appropriation budget pages 50 and 51? If the agency does not exist, yet found its way into the Nigerian national budget, what that means is that the entire 2026 appropriation budget is a fraud and should be discarded.”

Adeyemi further alleged that the disagreement stemmed from financial demands. “The major rationale behind the disagreement between myself and the Chief of Staff is because he allegedly requested 48% of the take-off grant (27,395,510,136 naira) from the same agency which he denies it exists to which I rejected. After he collected a total sum of 400 Million by proxy with remaining balance of 200 Million to secure the said appointment.”

He also raised concerns about governance processes, including the approval of over 300 staff, office accommodation in the Federal Secretariat, and bank accounts at the Central Bank of Nigeria.”