The House of Representatives has inaugurated an ad hoc committee to investigate the alleged appropriation of N1.3 billion to the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), an agency said to have no legal establishment, in the 2026 federal budget.
At the inauguration of the committee in Abuja, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dr. Abbas Tajuddeen, said the investigation was necessary to uphold transparency, accountability, and public confidence in government institutions
Represented by the House Majority Leader, Professor Julius Ihonvbere, the Speaker said democracy thrives when facts and due process guide decisions.
“Democracy functions best when facts prevail over rumours, evidence over conjecture, and accountability over opacity.”
Dr. Tajuddeen directed the committee to investigate how the PFIPC was included in the federal budget framework, identify the approvals and budgetary processes that led to its inclusion, and determine whether established procedures were followed.
The Chairman of the ad-hoc committee, Yusuf Gagdi, assured Nigerians that the investigation would be conducted fairly.
Mr. Gagdi, who explained that every individual and institution connected to the matter would be given a fair hearing, stated that the committee is committed to uncovering the facts and ensuring accountability where necessary.
During her submission before the committee, the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Didi Walson-Jack, said her office discovered that the law purportedly establishing the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council was fake after the agency appeared in the 2026 federal budget.
Mrs Walson-Jack also said that the office occupied by the council at Phase III of the Federal Secretariat in Abuja forms part of the office space officially allocated to the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
RN
