Senate Defers Probe into Fake Agency Budget Scandal

The Senate has declined to initiate a fresh investigation into the inclusion of a ₦1.3 billion budget allocation for a non-existent government agency, the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), in the 2026 Appropriation Act.

During Wednesday’s plenary, Senator Kawu Sumaila, representing Kano South, raised a point of order questioning how the purported agency secured such a significant allocation. He argued that the presence of the fake body in the national budget compromised the integrity of the appropriation process and required an immediate legislative inquiry. The lawmaker requested that Senate committees investigate how the allocation was proposed and approved, and whether any funds had been released or spent.

However, the Senate leadership, led by Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, opted to wait for the findings of an ongoing investigation by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC). President Bola Tinubu had previously directed the anti-graft agency to conduct a 30-day comprehensive probe into the matter.

“The Presidency has already directed that the ICPC should investigate fully how this matter came to be. We believe that what we need to do at this stage is to await the report of the ICPC, and then we can act accordingly,” Jibrin stated.

The controversy centers on allegations that a man posing as the Director-General of the fictitious council successfully inserted the agency into the national budget, despite the Presidency confirming the body has no legal basis. The ICPC probe is expected to examine the use of forged government documents, the opening of unauthorized bank accounts, and the failures in the budgetary process that allowed the fraudulent entity to appear legitimate.