Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
Former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, Atiku Abubakar, has strongly rejected President Bola Tinubu's directive to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the controversy surrounding the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), insisting that only an independent commission of inquiry can restore public confidence in the matter.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, 8 July 2026, by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku argued that the President's directive, coming days after he issued a seven-day ultimatum demanding a probe of the alleged scandal, amounted to an admission that previous investigations by the Nigeria Police were inadequate. "Only one week ago, the Presidency emphatically told Nigerians that the matter had already been investigated by the Police following petitions from the Chief of Staff in October 2025; that the suspect had been arrested; that searches had been conducted; that documentary exhibits had been recovered; that bank accounts had been traced; that statements had been obtained; and that criminal charges had already been filed before the Federal High Court," Atiku said.
"If all of that is true, what exactly is the ICPC expected to spend another thirty days investigating? If the Police investigation was comprehensive, another investigation is unnecessary. If another investigation has become necessary, then the inevitable conclusion is that the earlier investigation was insufficient. The President cannot simultaneously maintain both positions without contradicting his own government."
Atiku proposed the immediate establishment of a Special Independent Commission of Inquiry comprising ten eminent Nigerians nominated by the Federal Government, the ADC, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), civil society organisations, the Nigerian Bar Association, retired judicial officers, and other respected Nigerians of unquestionable integrity. He said the proposed panel should be empowered to conduct a comprehensive investigation into every aspect of the PFIPC affair, review investigative records compiled by the police and other security agencies, summon serving and former public officials where necessary, publish a white paper containing its findings and recommendations, and conclude its assignment within one month.
The former vice president also faulted the 30-day timeline given to the ICPC, arguing that the case was not a fresh investigation requiring an extended period. "This is not a fresh crime scene. It is not a newly discovered fraud. It is a matter the Presidency insists had already been thoroughly investigated. If that claim is true, the ICPC should not require another month to rediscover what the police supposedly established months ago. Nigerians deserve answers within days, not another cycle of delay."
He further questioned the official chronology of events, citing reports that the father of the principal suspect was arrested only last week despite the presidency's insistence that investigations had long been concluded. "While the Presidency insists the investigation had effectively been concluded months ago, reports indicate that the father of the principal suspect was only arrested last week. That development naturally raises questions about the status and scope of the investigation."
Atiku said the greater problem lies not merely in the timeline but in the structure of the investigation itself. "What Nigerians demanded was never another internal government investigation. We demanded an independent investigation. The Federal Government is itself central to this controversy because the questions being asked concern the conduct of public institutions, official processes and possible institutional failures. In every constitutional democracy, a party whose conduct is under scrutiny cannot simultaneously appoint itself investigator, judge and final authority over its own case."
According to him, the President's instruction to investigate the "wider circumstances" surrounding the alleged body also undermined the government's earlier claim that the incident involved only one individual impersonating government officials. "That directive is, in itself, a repudiation of the earlier narrative that this was merely the handiwork of one alleged impostor. The issue before Nigerians is no longer whether one individual allegedly forged documents. The issue is how an organisation the Presidency insists never existed allegedly acquired office accommodation, interacted with government institutions, sought diplomatic recognition, reportedly conducted recruitment exercises, operated multiple bank accounts and projected the authority of government over an extended period. Institutions do not accidentally confer legitimacy. Bureaucracies do not unknowingly sustain official-looking operations for months. Somewhere between the Presidency's denials and the appearance of official legitimacy lies the truth Nigerians deserve to know."
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