We rejected ‘phantom’ council’s request for collaboration – Foreign Ministry

The Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday told the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee probing the alleged unestablished Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) that it rejected the council’s requests for collaboration after discovering discrepancies in documents submitted by its self-acclaimed Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi. The ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Ambassador Dunoma Umar Ahmed, […]

The Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday told the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee probing the alleged unestablished Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) that it rejected the council’s requests for collaboration after discovering discrepancies in documents submitted by its self-acclaimed Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi.

The ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Ambassador Dunoma Umar Ahmed, said the ministry had no official relationship with the PFIPC and never recognised it as a government agency.

Ahmed made the disclosure while appearing before the committee investigating the activities of the alleged council, chaired by Rep. Yusuf Adamu Gagdi (APC, Plateau).

He said Prince Adeyemi approached the ministry on three occasions — June 26, 2025, August 5, 2025 and June 5, 2026 — seeking the ministry’s endorsement and collaboration to host a World Investment Summit in Nigeria.

According to him, the ministry declined the requests in line with due diligence procedures after identifying inconsistencies in the documents and correspondence submitted by the alleged council.

“The ministry has never had any official interaction or engagement with the PFIPC or its alleged Director-General. We declined the requests because of discrepancies observed in the documents presented to us,” the permanent secretary said.

He said the ministry subsequently wrote to the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) on October 16, 2025, requesting clarification on the status of Prince Adeyemi and the PFIPC.

Ahmed said the NSA, in a response dated November 26, 2025, informed the ministry that enquiries made with the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President showed that neither Prince Adeyemi nor the PFIPC was known to the Federal Government.

He added that the ministry never participated in any diplomatic, bilateral or multilateral engagement organised by the council and that no memorandum of understanding or agreement with any foreign government was signed through it.

The permanent secretary also told lawmakers that the alleged council never facilitated any foreign investor, partner or delegation through the ministry.

During the hearing, members of the committee questioned why the ministry did not formally notify Prince Adeyemi after receiving confirmation from the NSA that the organisation was unknown to the Federal Government.

Responding, Ahmed said the ministry did not communicate directly with him after receiving the security report.

Following the presentation, the committee summoned the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the National Security Adviser to appear before it on Thursday.

Chairman of the committee, Rep. Yusuf Adamu Gagdi, said the NSA would be required to explain what actions were taken after confirming that the PFIPC was not recognised by the Federal Government.

“If they confirmed it was an illegal agency, they should tell Nigerians what they did thereafter,” Gagdi said.

He also questioned how the alleged council was able to carry out diplomatic engagements that ordinarily fall within the mandate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, describing the development as a serious institutional failure.

Gagdi said the committee would also invite the Presidential Economic Advisory Council after observing that the letterhead used by Prince Adeyemi identified him as Director-General of both the Presidential Economic Advisory Council and the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council.