Senate to Probe Controversial N1.3bn Budget Allocation for Non-Existent Agency

The Nigerian Senate is scheduled to address the escalating controversy surrounding a N1.3 billion allocation in the 2026 Appropriation Act for the “Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council,” an entity currently described as a phantom agency. Legislative action is expected when the Senate resumes plenary on Tuesday, following revelations that the suspicious budget item was approved despite the absence of any formal budget defense by the organization.

Investigations indicate that the scandal originated from a sophisticated forgery operation. Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Mathew allegedly utilized a falsified appointment letter, which bore a forged signature of the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, to secure an office at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja. This maneuver provided the fraudulent organization with a veneer of official legitimacy, allowing it to bypass bureaucratic safeguards within the Budget Office, the Civil Service Headquarters, and certain legislative committees.

Sources within the Presidency confirmed that the Chief of Staff was unaware of the operation and personally alerted the Department of State Services after the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission reported that the fake council was encroaching upon its statutory mandate. Although Adeyemi was initially arrested and arraigned in October last year, the prosecution experienced significant delays, and reports suggest he has since violated his bail conditions.

The revelation has triggered widespread backlash from civil society organizations, opposition figures, and political movements, all demanding a comprehensive investigation into how a non-existent body was successfully embedded in the national budget. Groups such as the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project and the Human and Environmental Development Agenda are calling for full disclosure regarding the documentation process and the identification of the officials who facilitated the allocation.

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar described the incident as part of a recurring pattern of governance, urging the administration to prioritize transparency. Meanwhile, legal experts have cautioned against calls for the resignation of high-ranking officials based on speculation, emphasizing that the focus should remain on identifying the systemic failures that allowed the fraudulent agency to access federal infrastructure and the national payroll.

As the Senate prepares to intervene, public pressure is mounting for a clear accounting of how such a significant sum was approved without adequate due diligence, and whether any public funds have already been committed to the perpetrators. Adeyemi is scheduled to appear before a Federal High Court in Abuja on July 27, 2026, to face charges alongside two accomplices who remain at large.