Self-Styled DG Claims He Was Out of Picture Before Budget Inclusion
Prince Adeyemi Matthew Adeniyi, who presented himself as Director-General of the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, has claimed he was already out of the picture by the time the fake agency appeared in the federal government's 2025 budget. This contradicts assumptions about how the N1.3 billion allocation came about. Adeniyi made the disclosures in a recorded interview with social media influencer Martins Vincent Otse, widely known as VeryDarkMan, which was released shortly after his arrest.
Budget Office Visit and Rejection
According to Adeniyi, he travelled to the Budget Office in December 2024 to push for the agency's inclusion in the 2025 Appropriation Bill, only to be told the submission window had already closed. “I went to that Budget Office for the 2025 budget. I submitted the letter and everything that I wanted, but I was told it was already late. When the 2025 budget came out and I didn't see it, they told me it would now be for the 2026 budget,” he said. He described how a female official inside the office helped him gain access to the Director-General before he was directed further down the chain. During that encounter, he alleged a senior official demanded a bribe, which he said he declined to pay.
Alleged Bribe Demand and Arrest
“She helped me to see the oga. Oga now said, 'Where is my shini?' I said I don't have any shini. He later asked me to meet one director,” Adeniyi recalled. He said the director acknowledged his proposal but could not fit it into the 2025 budget, with assurances that the 2026 cycle remained a possibility. His legal troubles, however, brought everything to a halt before any outcome was reached. “Immediately, there was a problem, everything stopped. Even the woman that wanted to help was calling because she couldn't reach me. I told her to let everything stop,” he said, adding that he could not explain how the agency later showed up in the budget. “I didn't even know until they said it was inside the budget. I had already left the office.”
Denial of Gbajabiamila Involvement
On the question of whether Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila was involved in the budgetary process, Adeniyi was categorical that he was not. He said he never met Gbajabiamila in person at any point. Regarding separate allegations that N400 million was paid to secure his appointment, Adeniyi said the funds were delivered in US dollars through his late associate, Dolapo Tanimola, who acted as the go-between throughout. “I never met Gbajabiamila physically before and after he was appointed. Dolapo Tanimola handled everything for me,” he said. He also denied paying any cash to Budget Office officials, insisting the only thing he offered was a verbal promise of future employment opportunities should the agency become operational.
