Nigerian Legislature Divided as PFIPC Scandal Sparks Probe Controversy
The alleged ₦1.3 billion allocation to the fictitious Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) has triggered political controversy, with the House of Reps launching an inquiry while the Senate rejects calls for a broader investigation.
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Nigeria’s political landscape is embroiled in controversy over the revelation of a ₦1.3 billion budget allocation to the non-existent Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), prompting divergent responses from legislative chambers and renewed debate over the credibility of official investigations.
On Wednesday, the Senate declined to initiate a comprehensive investigation into the PFIPC’s budgetary allocation and operations, according to Naija News. This decision contrasts sharply with actions taken by the House of Reps, which launched its own probe into the phantom agency’s funding. Lawmakers in the lower chamber have resolved to summon the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning and the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation to explain the verification procedures applied before new entities are admitted into the federal budget, Premium Times reports.
The scandal has also drawn sharp criticism from opposition figures. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has publicly faulted President Bola Tinubu’s directive to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the matter. In statements reported by both Naija News and Vanguard News, Atiku argued that a government under suspicion cannot credibly investigate itself, stating that Tinubu’s move amounts to allowing a party to be both 'judge and jury.' The opposition Action Democratic Congress (ADC) echoed this sentiment, asserting that a government 'drowning in scandals' lacks the impartiality to conduct a legitimate inquiry. The ADC described Tinubu’s decision to order a probe as an implicit acknowledgment that the allegations could no longer be dismissed.
Meanwhile, Mathew Adeniyi Adeyemi, the purported Director General of the PFIPC, has denied meeting one-on-one with Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila, though no further details about his role or appointment were confirmed in the source material. The existence of the council, its mandate, and the process by which it received budgetary approval remain under scrutiny as institutional and political tensions escalate.