Budget Office Rejects Fake Agency’s N3.8bn Personnel Cost Claim

The Budget Office of the Federation has rejected a claim for N3.8 billion in personnel costs submitted under the name of the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, preventing what officials described as unlawful expenditure of public funds.

The rejection adds to the unfolding scandal surrounding the alleged agency, whose self styled Director General, Adeniyi Adeyemi, was arrested earlier this month following a bench warrant issued by a Federal High Court.

The Presidency has consistently maintained that no such agency exists within the federal government structure, even as questions persist over how a budgetary allocation linked to the council made it into the 2026 Appropriation Act.

President Bola Tinubu has directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission to investigate the matter, with civil society groups continuing to press for a fully independent probe and protection for any whistleblowers involved.

The Budget Office’s rejection of the personnel cost claim is expected to feature prominently in ongoing investigations into how the fraudulent allocation was inserted into the national budget in the first place.

Anti corruption advocates say the case underscores persistent vulnerabilities in Nigeria’s budget preparation process, calling for stronger safeguards to prevent similar fraudulent allocations in future appropriation bills.

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