Prince Adeyemi Adeniyi, who identified himself as the Director-General of the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), has spoken about the circumstances that led to the inclusion of a N1.3 billion allocation linked to the organisation in the 2025 federal budget.
Adeniyi said he had already disengaged from the process before the amount appeared in the government’s appropriation document. He stated that he had no knowledge of the actions or decisions that eventually resulted in PFIPC being listed in the budget.
He made the statement during a recorded interview with online influencer Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan. The interview was released shortly after his arrest over allegations of forgery, impersonation and conspiracy connected to the activities of the organisation.
According to Adeniyi, he visited the Budget Office in December 2024 to submit a request for PFIPC to be considered in the 2025 budget. However, he said he was informed that the period for receiving budget proposals had already ended.
He explained that although he submitted documents and presented his request, officials told him the process had been concluded. Adeniyi said he later discovered that the council was not included in the 2025 budget and was advised to seek consideration during the preparation of the next budget cycle.
He further alleged that a female official at the Budget Office assisted him in meeting with senior government officials regarding his proposal. Adeniyi claimed that during one of the meetings, an official requested a personal favour before the matter could receive further attention.
He said he informed the official that he was unable to provide what was requested and was subsequently referred to another director for further discussion.
Adeniyi stated that the director explained that PFIPC could not be accommodated in the 2025 budget because the process had already been completed. He added that he was told the proposal could be reviewed during the following budget preparation period.
He said his arrest and the legal issues that followed brought all activities connected to the proposed council to an end. According to him, he stopped pursuing the matter after the controversy surrounding the organisation emerged.
Adeniyi added that the female official who had earlier assisted him attempted to reach him afterwards but could not get through. He said he instructed her to discontinue all efforts concerning the proposal.
The self-acclaimed PFIPC Director-General maintained that he was unaware of the N1.3 billion allocation until reports emerged that the organisation had appeared in the 2025 budget.
He insisted that he was no longer involved when the appropriation document was finalised and denied having any information about how the allocation was eventually included.
