Important Lessons
There were requests for President Bola Tinubu's chief of staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, to be questioned by the House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee on the PFIPC issue.
After being detained for two weeks, Inspector-General of Police Olatunji Disu was directed by Committee Chairman Yusuf Gagdi to bring alleged PFIPC promoter Adeniyi Adeyemi by Wednesday at noon.
Human and Environmental Development Agenda requested that Gbajabiamila resign because Adeyemi allegedly referenced ₦400 million, and police claimed to have filed eight counts of Federal High Court charges.
The House of Representatives Ad-Hoc Committee looking into the contentious Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) is under increasing pressure to question Femi Gbajabiamila, the president's chief of staff, about claims pertaining to the council's alleged creation.
According to KohlorsMedia, the committee ordered Inspector-General of Police Olatunji Disu to bring Adeniyi Adeyemi, the council's purported promoter, before lawmakers by Wednesday at noon.
Adeyemi, who has allegedly been detained by the police for almost two weeks, is anticipated to respond to inquiries stemming from statements and records that have previously been provided to the panel.
The committee, led by Yusuf Gagdi, a lawmaker from Plateau State's Kanke/Kanam/Pankshin Federal Constituency, is looking into how the alleged organization obtained official recognition, accommodations in government offices, and attempted budgetary provisions in spite of the Federal Government's denials that it existed.
Following allegations made by Adeyemi that connected the Chief of Staff to the council's formation, concerns over Gbajabiamila's absence from the proceedings grew.
When the IGP appeared before the committee on Monday, a source familiar with the committee's activities questioned why legislators did not ask the police for more information.
"Today, the IGP made an appearance via a top police official. The insider told The PUNCH, "Why did not the committee ask pertinent questions?"
The source also questioned Dolapo Tanimola, an accused middleman who Adeyemi allegedly claimed received N400 million meant for the Chief of Staff.
The source claims that Tanimola
In response to the incident, the Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA) called on Gbajabiamila to resign until the investigations were finished.
However, HEDA Chairman Suraju Olanrewaju admitted that there was now no hard proof of direct communication between Adeyemi and the Chief of Staff.
"It is challenging to hold Adeyemi accountable until the investigations are finished because he has not produced hard proof of a direct relationship, in-person meeting, or phone conversations with the Chief of Staff," he stated.
However, Olanrewaju contended that the dispute called into doubt the Presidency's administrative protections.
Additionally, he urged the committee to invite George Akume, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, to discuss any involvement his office may have had in the council's operations.
He claimed that "the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation is even more complicit in the PFIPC affair."
ACP Bashir Abdullahi, the IGP's representative, informed MPs that criminal proceedings against Adeyemi had already begun during Monday's resumed session.
Late last year, the Nigerian Police Force conducted an investigation into a portion of this case and brought eight charges before a Federal High Court. "The lawsuit is still pending," Abdullahi stated.
He cautioned lawmakers against pressuring police investigators to divulge material that would jeopardize the pending criminal case.
"We do not want to discuss topics that are being looked into. It will undoubtedly skew the current inquiry and cause people to form opinions that could influence how the investigation turns out.
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