₦600m Bribery Claim Rocks Tinubu Presidency: Fresh Questions Emerge as 'Non-Existent' Agency Sparks New Scandal

The administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is once again under intense scrutiny following explosive allegations by Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, who claims he paid ₦600 million to secure an appointment to head a federal agency that the Presidency now insists does not exist.

According to Adeyemi, he allegedly paid ₦400 million upfront and was expected to pay another ₦200 million later before his appointment could be completed. He further claimed that he later came under pressure to surrender 48 percent of a proposed ₦24 billion take-off grant earmarked for the agency, a demand he said he refused.

The allegations have been categorically denied by the Presidency.

Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, has distanced himself from Adeyemi and declared that the so-called Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) is not a government agency and does not exist under the Tinubu administration.

However, the controversy did not end there.

Adeyemi insists the agency is genuine, alleging that it has a budgetary allocation running into billions of naira in the 2026 Appropriation Act, more than 300 approved staff reportedly cleared by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, and operational accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria.

Those claims have fueled calls for the Presidency to publish official records to settle the matter once and for all.

Critics argue that if the agency truly does not exist, questions must be answered about how it allegedly secured a budget allocation, staffing approvals and banking arrangements. If, on the other hand, the agency exists, they ask why the Presidency has disowned it.

The latest controversy also revives memories of previous allegations surrounding the Office of the Chief of Staff. Since assuming office in 2023, Gbajabiamila has faced several public accusations relating to appointments and influence within government, including claims that appointments were being traded for money. Those allegations were denied, and no court has found him guilty of any wrongdoing.

For many Nigerians, the issue goes beyond one individual. It raises broader concerns about transparency and accountability in the Tinubu administration.

Political observers say the Presidency can put the controversy to rest by making public the relevant documents—including any appointment letter, budget entries, payroll records, CBN account details and any evidence supporting or disproving the bribery allegations.

Until then, the questions remain unanswered.

If Prince Adeyemi fabricated the allegations, it would amount to one of the most serious false accusations ever levelled against a serving Chief of Staff.

But if his claims are eventually substantiated, the implications would represent one of the gravest corruption scandals to confront the Tinubu administration.

Either way, many Nigerians believe the matter deserves far more than official denials—it requires an independent investigation and full public disclosure.