Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
A businessman, Gbenga Collins, has told the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee investigating the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) that he was defrauded of N400 million by the agency's self-acclaimed Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi, after being promised a contract to renovate and furnish what was presented as the official residence of the embattled executive. Collins, the Managing Director of Divine Dopacy Nigeria Limited, made the revelation during the committee's public hearing on Tuesday, August 4, 2026, as he detailed how the trappings of government authority—official vehicles, security escorts, and an office at the Federal Secretariat—convinced him he was dealing with a legitimate federal institution.
Collins, a graduate of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, told lawmakers that he first met Adeyemi, whom he described as a fellow indigene of Ogbomoso, in December 2024 during a programme in their hometown. Adeyemi subsequently invited him to Abuja around January or February 2025 to discuss a business opportunity. When Collins arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, an official car bearing a Federal Government registration number was sent to pick him up and convey him to Adeyemi's office at the Federal Secretariat. "When I got to his office, I met him there. He is a well-known man in Ogbomoso. I met a lot of people, very big dignitaries in his office, and I met a group of security officers guarding the office," Collins testified. He added that he saw police officers with Adeyemi and that the official setting gave him no reason to question the man's claims.
Adeyemi introduced himself as the Director-General of both the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC) and the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC). He subsequently informed Collins that he had been allocated an official residence as the DG and wanted Collins's company to handle its renovation and furnishing. Adeyemi personally took Collins to inspect the property the following day, accompanied by staff and security personnel in a convoy of multiple vehicles. "We went with more than four, five or six vehicles with security. They opened the house and took us round, showing me what they wanted to do," Collins recalled.
Discussions continued until April 2025, when Adeyemi allegedly handed Collins a contract award letter, a scope of work, and an agreement authorising his company to execute the refurbishment project. However, Collins was then informed that he needed to pay N400 million to demonstrate his company's financial capacity and facilitate mobilisation for the contract. "I had to pay N400 million for the facilitation of that project to show my strength that I would be able to handle the project. At the same time, he said it would fast-track the mobilisation for the contract," Collins told the committee. The businessman disclosed that he raised the money from business associates who trusted him because he had personally visited Adeyemi's office and was convinced he was dealing with a legitimate government institution.
The N400 million was paid in five instalments between May and July 2025 into accounts belonging to World Entrepreneurs Limited and Sunshine Confectionery and Catering Services. Despite repeated assurances that mobilisation would commence first in August and later in November 2025, the promised payment never materialised. "My lawyer was the first person who told me that I had been scammed," Collins said, adding that he subsequently petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on November 13, 2025. While admitting that he did not follow the Public Procurement Act, Collins denied paying the money as a bribe, insisting he believed it was a legitimate condition for facilitating the contract. He appealed to the committee to help recover the funds from Adeyemi.
The PFIPC scandal has also drawn in the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, after Adeyemi claimed that Gbajabiamila issued his appointment letter as Director-General—an allegation Gbajabiamila has strongly denied. Adeyemi had also claimed he borrowed N400 million to secure the PFIPC appointment and that the lenders later reported him to the EFCC after he failed to repay the debt. Police operatives arrested Adeyemi in Osun State on July 14, 2026, days after Gbajabiamila instituted a N15 billion defamation suit against him. The controversy has continued to deepen, with several heads of government agencies alleging that forged documents submitted by Adeyemi paved the way for budgetary allocations to the PFIPC. Subsequent testimonies before the House committee by the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation also raised concerns over document verification failures and the approval process that allowed the agency's staffing structure and recruitment waiver to proceed.
The House committee, chaired by Hon. Yusuf Gagdi, has since summoned the Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) to explain how vehicles allegedly used by Adeyemi obtained official government number plates. The committee also disclosed that it would interact with Adeyemi at an undisclosed location to avoid compromising investigations by security and anti-graft agencies. For Collins, the N400 million loss has been a devastating blow, but his testimony has become a critical piece of evidence in exposing the elaborate web of deception that allowed a phantom agency to operate within Nigeria's federal bureaucracy for an extended period.
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