By Kingston Magare 3.7.2026
President Bola Tinubu seems to be unfazed by the monumental scandal that is rocking his government following the back and forth between his Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila and Adeniyi Adeyemi over a “fictitious” government agency.
Mr. Adeyemi had alleged that he paid N400m to the Hon. Gbajabiamila to become the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) and its director general. According to him trouble started when Gbajabiamila allegedly demanded for a 48 percent of the agency’s take of grant.
“The major rationale behind the disagreement between myself and the Chief of Staff is that he allegedly requested 48 per cent of the take-off grant (₦27,395,510,136) from the same agency, which he denies, which I rejected after he collected a total sum of ₦400 million by proxy, with a remaining balance of ₦200 million to secure the said appointment,” Adeyemi claimed.
But Gbajabiamila denied the allegations saying the agency does not exist, also the presidency in a statement by Bayo Onanuga affirmed that there was no wrongdoing by Gbajabiamila.
However, Adeyemi insisted that Gbajabiamila knew all about the agency, which according to him ran an office in the Federal Secretariat, received budgetary allocations. He also called for an investigation into the mysterious death of Dalapo Babatunde Tanimola, an alleged go between for him and Hon Gbajabiamila. Mr. Adeyemi is currently facing charges of forgery and impersonation at a Federal High Court in Abuja.
Nigerians have continued to call on the government to come clean on the swirling controversy.
The Nigeria Democratic Congress called on the government as a first step to removed Gbajabiamila from his position and launch an independent investigation into the matter.
“According to the allegations by Prince Adeyemi, the PFIPC received budgetary allocations in the 2026 budget and successfully opened a Domiciliary Account, a Pound Sterling Account, and a Treasury Single Account (TSA), all domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“This development is baffling, given that the Presidency has publicly disclaimed the existence of any such agency.
“The non-existent agency was allegedly used to siphon public funds, with the active collusion and facilitation by the Chief of Staff, Gbajabiamila,” adding that the development “raises fundamental questions about the level of transparency, accountability, and the integrity of the Tinubu administration,” the NDC said in a statement signed by its national publicity secretary.
Former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All-Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Timi Frank called for a probe into the death of Mr. Tanimola who died in an Abuja hotel five days before Mr. Adeyemi was arrested.
He said: “By now, we expected the Office of the Chief of Staff, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), the Central Bank, the Budget Office, the National Assembly, and the relevant security agencies to be answering uncomfortable questions.
“Despite widespread claims that the agency Prince Adeyemi ran did not legally exist, there are informations in public domain that the purported Director General of Presidential Foreign Intervention and Promotion Council enjoyed six police officers as escorts, official vehicles, and even an official residence.
“There were also media reports this Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led administration granted a waiver to PFIPC under Prince Adeyemi to recruit 300 members of staff in August 2025.
“The media reports revealed that Mimi Abu, director, organisation design and development, in the office of the head of the civil service of the federation, conveyed the government’s approval for recruitment in a letter dated August 7, 2025.”
Also, Yoruba socio-cultural group, Ìgbìnmó Májékóbájé Ilé-Yorùbá, accused President Tinubu of shielding Gbajabiamila in the ongoing controversy. The group called for an independent investigation rather than public denials.
“It is shameful that Bayo Onanuga, the government spokesperson, without any iota of shame, will come to the public to mislead Nigerians because one of them is involved in a scandal,” Yoruba Union said in a statement signed by the Convener of the group, Olusola Badero,
“How on earth will the non-existent agency claimed by Gbajabiamila and Onanuga get its way into the 2026 budget and receive the assent of President Tinubu? Who are they deceiving and who are they hiding that they don’t want Nigerians to know about?
“It is obvious that the country is being piloted by wicked and heartless people who prioritise their personal interests above the country’s.
“Nigerians are not fools and they cannot be gaslighted by either Gbajabiamila or Onanuga. Nigerians deserve to know what transpired, and Gbajabiamila should be suspended by Tinubu if indeed the President is not involved in the whole scandal.”
Femi Gbajabiamila and Adeniyi Adeyemi...who is lying?