The Budget Office of the Federation (BOF) has clarified that the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), an agency recently declared illegal by the Presidency and currently under investigation by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), traces its origin to the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Speaking after appearing before the House of Representatives, the Director-General of the Budget Office, Tanimu Yakubu, explained that the council evolved from the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC) established by Buhari on October 9, 2019.
Yakubu stated that before the preparation of the 2026 budget, the PFIPC had already been assigned an administrative code by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, received an approved establishment and recruitment waiver from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service, and had an existing public service salary structure.
He stressed that the Budget Office neither created the council nor approved its establishment, but merely assessed the fiscal implications of the official documents presented to it.
According to him, although the council initially requested ₦3.85 billion for personnel costs in the 2026 fiscal year, the Budget Office independently reduced the estimate to ₦802.98 million using approved staffing levels, salary structures and government costing guidelines.
Yakubu further disclosed that despite the appropriation, the council was unable to access any funds because it failed to obtain the mandatory Financial Clearance, which is required before recruitment, payroll enrolment and salary payments can commence.
He explained that without Financial Clearance, no recruitment took place, no staff were placed on the federal payroll, and no salaries were paid.
The Budget Office therefore maintained that not a single kobo of the personnel allocation was released or spent.
The PFIPC controversy came to public attention in June 2026 after the Presidency described the body as non-existent and referred the matter to law enforcement agencies.
The council’s promoter, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, later insisted the organisation was legitimate and alleged that he personally sought its inclusion in the federal budget. He has since been arrested in connection with the PFIPC scandal and allegations of forgery.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) also confirmed that two foreign currency accounts linked to the PFIPC were opened on the directive of the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation but stated that the accounts were never funded or operated.
