Budget Office Indicted: The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has indicted the Budget Office of the Federation (BOF) for failing to conduct proper due diligence, allowing the fake Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), headed by Adeyemi Adeniyi, to be included in the 2026 federal budget [cite: The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has indicted the Budget Office of the Federation (BOF) over lapses that allowed the purported Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), headed by Adeyemi Adeniyi, into the 2026 federal budget.].....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

• Lack of Independent Verification: According to the ICPC investigation reported by Premium Times, the BOF processed the council without independently verifying its legal existence or enabling instruments, relying instead on an administrative code from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) and unverified scanned documents attributed to the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) [cite: reports that the Budget Office is responsible for preparing and coordinating the annual federal budget based on submissions from ministries, departments and agencies., According to Premium Times, this was disclosed in the commission’s investigation into the activities of the organisation., The ICPC reports revealed that the Budget Office processed and onboarded the PFIPC into the 2026 budget despite visible gaps in its documentation., It accused the Budget Office (BOF) of not independently verifying the legal instrument establishing it., The investigation found that the BOF relied on an administrative code issued by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) and establishment-related documents attributed to the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF), without independently confirming their authenticity or establishing the council’s legal existence., Instead, the copy in its file was a scanned document.].

• Budget Recalculation and Control Failures: Although a N3.85 billion personnel cost was initially proposed via a flash drive, the BOF recalculated it to N1.3 billion using the Consolidated Public Service Salary Structure due to a lack of approved salary schedules, and proceeded despite incomplete submissions and a lack of adherence to internal Standard Operating Procedures [cite: On 20 August 2025, a budget proposal submitted on behalf of the PFIPC contained a proposed personnel cost of N3.85 billion. The submission was accompanied by a flash drive containing details of the proposed personnel expenditure., However, the Budget Office did not adopt the proposed figure because there was no approved salary structure from the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission. The ICPC said the office recalculated the personnel expenditure using the Consolidated Public Service Salary Structure., It arrived at a total allocation of N1.3 billion, comprising N802 million for personnel, N200 million for overhead and N300 million for capital expenditure., The investigation found that the Budget Office proceeded with the onboarding despite the incomplete submission., The investigation also examined the Budget Office’s Standard Operating Procedure for the Expenditure Department, which sets out how budget proposals from government institutions are to be received, reviewed and uploaded into the annual federal budget., The ICPC found that these safeguards were not effectively applied in the PFIPC case.].

• Findings and Recommendations: While investigators found no evidence that the allocated funds were ever cash-backed or spent, the ICPC highlighted broad internal control weaknesses and recommended that the BOF tighten onboarding requirements for new agencies, while Adeyemi maintains his innocence and plans to prove his case in court [cite: The commission said available evidence established that a budgetary provision was made for the purported agency, but did not establish that the money was released, cash-backed, paid or spent., The Commission identified broader weaknesses in the Budget Office’s internal controls., The commission recommended that the Budget Office strengthen its onboarding requirements for newly established ministries, departments and agencies by making the submission of all mandatory establishment instruments and budget documents a prerequisite for inclusion in the federal budget., The purported chairman of the ‘fake’ agency, Adeyemi has maintained his innocence, insisting that he would prove his case in court.].