Firdaus Obiremi
The Federal Government has moved to re-arraign Adeniyi Adeyemi over alleged forgery and impersonation linked to the purported Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council.
The Federal Government is set to arraign Adeniyi Adeyemi afresh over alleged forgery and impersonation linked to the purported Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) after a Federal High Court in Abuja struck out the eight-count charge against him.
Justice Mohammed Umar struck out the charge on Monday following an application by the prosecution to discontinue the proceedings before the court, pending Adeyemi’s fresh arraignment before the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory.
The Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, told the court that the Attorney-General of the Federation had reviewed the case file and identified jurisdictional issues with the charge initially filed by the Inspector-General of Police.
Oyedepo explained that the alleged forged documents connected to Adeyemi’s operations of the purported agency fell within the jurisdiction of the FCT High Court rather than the Federal High Court.
He said the Federal Government had filed a fresh charge before the FCT High Court and intended to arraign the defendant without delay.
The prosecution subsequently asked the court to strike out the existing charge to pave the way for the new proceedings.
Counsel to Adeyemi, Ibrahim Angulu, did not oppose the application.
Umar consequently struck out the eight-count charge.
The development means the prosecution will pursue the allegations against Adeyemi before the FCT High Court, where the fresh charge has reportedly been filed.
Adeyemi has been in police custody since his arrest in Osun State on July 14, according to the report.
Before his arrest, a Federal High Court in Abuja had ordered his arrest after he allegedly failed to honour the court’s summons.
Adeyemi was accused of masterminding the purported PFIPC, which allegedly operated like a government agency despite lacking the legal authority to do so.
The purported council was reported to have received an allocation in the 2026 national budget, occupied an office at the Federal Secretariat and recruited staff, despite having no established legal status or presidential declaration authorising its creation.
The controversy surrounding the alleged scheme intensified after Adeyemi claimed that the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, received N400m through a proxy in connection with an appointment letter into the purported agency.
The allegation against Gbajabiamila has not been established by the information contained in the report.
Following public outcry over the scandal, President Bola Tinubu reportedly directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission to investigate the matter.
The fresh arraignment is expected to provide another opportunity for the prosecution to present its case against Adeyemi before the court with jurisdiction over the allegations.
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