The  Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation(OAGF) has dismissed claims that the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) operates an account with the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN), contradicting an earlier position by the Presidency.

The Presidency had alleged that Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, who presented himself as Director-General of the PFIPC, fraudulently opened a CBN account by misleading the OAGF.

Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, in a statement, said police investigations revealed that Adeyemi used forged documents to open the account, although no government funds were deposited into it. The statement also cleared, Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, of any involvement in the matter.

However, the OAGF has clarified that the PFIPC never completed the required process to operate a CBN account, making it impossible for any public funds to be paid into it.

Speaking on the issue, the OAGF Director of Public Relations, Bawa Mokwa, explained that while an application to open the account was initiated after Adeyemi presented an “appointment letter” linked to an existing government agency, the process was never finalised.

According to him, the failure to submit the names of authorised signatories stalled the process, preventing the account from becoming operational.

“The account has not seen the light of day. It has not received one kobo because it was never fully activated. The Accountant-General has not released any money because there is no operational account for such payment,” Mokwa said.

He further clarified that although the council has a budgetary allocation, such provision in the Appropriation Act does not automatically translate into the release of funds.

The OAGF also dismissed claims that salaries were paid to staff of the council, stressing that federal agencies must obtain approvals from key institutions, including the Federal Character Commission, the Budget Office and the Federal Civil Service Commission, before employees can be enrolled on the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System.

“If an agency is granted a waiver to recruit, it must still obtain approvals from the relevant agencies before presenting staff details to the Accountant-General. Without those approvals, not even one employee can be captured on the payroll,” he said.

Mokwa maintained that none of these statutory conditions had been met by the PFIPC, insisting that the council has neither an operational CBN account nor an approved payroll through which public funds could be disbursed.

The controversy surrounding the PFIPC first emerged after the Presidency disowned the body, stating that no such agency exists under the administration of , and warning Nigerians against engaging with individuals claiming to represent it.

The Presidency subsequently disclosed that Adeyemi is standing trial on charges bordering on alleged forgery, impersonation and related offences.

According to officials, the matter came to light in October 2025 after the  (NIPC) raised concerns that the purported council was performing functions similar to its mandate.

Following this, the Office of the Chief of Staff to the President petitioned security agencies, alleging that appointment letters and other official documents purportedly issued in the name of the Presidency had been forged.

Investigators reportedly recovered several documents during searches conducted after Adeyemi’s arrest, while the government has consistently maintained that the PFIPC was never legally established.

However, the issue took a new turn after the 2026 Appropriation Act listed the Presidential Economic Advisory Council/Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council under the Presidency, with a budgetary allocation of about N1.3 billion for personnel, overhead and capital expenditure.

The development has sparked widespread reactions from opposition figures, legal experts and civil society groups, who questioned how an entity described as non-existent by the Presidency could appear in the federal budget.

The controversy has since raised broader concerns over Nigeria’s budgeting and administrative processes, with calls intensifying for an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the matter.