The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack, has admitted that her office failed to carry out adequate due diligence before approving the staffing structure and recruitment waiver for the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), whose documents have now been declared fake.
Walson-Jack made the admission on Wednesday while appearing before the House of Representatives committee investigating the circumstances surrounding the establishment of the PFIPC and the N1.3 billion appropriated to the council in the 2026 budget.
She told lawmakers that her office granted the approvals after receiving what appeared to be the council’s establishment Act and a letter appointing Adeniyi Adeyemi as its Director-General.
According to her, the documents submitted, coupled with interactions between officials of her office and representatives of the organisation, formed the basis for issuing both the authorised establishment and the recruitment waiver.
She, however, acknowledged that greater scrutiny should have been applied, saying subsequent investigations had shown that the documents presented were fraudulent.
“Having seen all the facts and examined the documents, we concede that we ought to have carried out more due diligence before issuing the authorised establishment and recruitment waiver,” she said.
Walson-Jack noted that while the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC) had previously existed as an ad hoc body, the documents presented combined the names PEAC and PFIPC, a discrepancy that more rigorous verification could have detected.
She assured lawmakers that her office had accepted responsibility for the lapse and would strengthen its internal processes to make them more resistant to fraud.
The controversy has also drawn in the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, after Adeyemi claimed that his appointment letter was signed by him.
The Presidency has dismissed the claim, insisting that the appointment letter bearing Gbajabiamila’s signature was forged. The Chief of Staff had earlier petitioned security agencies over the alleged forgery.
Adeyemi was arrested on 14 July by operatives of the Police Intelligence Response Team in Osun State and remains in police custody.
Meanwhile, the House Committee investigating the matter said it had uncovered extensive evidence of forgery during its public hearing.
Chairman of the committee, Rep. Yusuf Gagdi (APC, Plateau), disclosed that investigators had identified no fewer than 19 forged State House documents allegedly used by Adeyemi to secure approvals from various government agencies for the operation of the council.
Gagdi said the committee would now proceed with closed-door sessions involving the remaining agencies to clarify outstanding issues, consolidate evidence, and ensure all parties receive a fair hearing.
He announced that the panel would present its preliminary findings to the public next week before submitting its final report to the House of Representatives after the National Assembly resumes plenary.
The committee, he added, remains committed to conducting a thorough, transparent, and impartial investigation in the interest of accountability and justice.
The House of Representatives had constituted the investigative panel on July 20 following concerns over the legal status of the PFIPC, its operational framework and its appearance in the 2026 Appropriation Act despite questions surrounding its lawful establishment.
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