Nigeria Head of Service Admits Due Diligence Failures in PFIPC Scandal

The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Esther Walson-Jack, admitted Wednesday that her office failed to perform adequate due diligence before granting recruitment waivers and official recognition to the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC). Testifying before a House of Representatives ad hoc committee, Walson-Jack acknowledged relying on documents featuring the State House logo and familiar signatures that forensic police later confirmed were fraudulent. She clarified that while her office issued an authorized establishment and recruitment waiver, it did not provide office accommodation, an organizational structure, or staff deployments.

The committee, chaired by Yusuf Gagdi, is investigating how the PFIPC allegedly operated without legal establishment despite receiving a ₦1.32 billion allocation in the 2026 Appropriation Act and occupying space at the Federal Secretariat.

Prince Adeyemi Adeniyi, the self-acclaimed Director-General of the PFIPC, was unable to appear at the hearing. Inspector-General of Police Olatunji Rilwan Disu informed the committee that Adeniyi is in police custody under a court remand order, facing criminal charges for conspiracy, forgery, and falsely posing as a government official. Chairman Gagdi stated that the legislative inquiry would not interfere with the ongoing police investigation and plans to file a final report next week.