No Staff, Office Space Allocated to PFIPC, Head of Service Tells Reps

The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HoS), Esther Walson-Jack, has told the House of Representatives that her office neither allocated office space nor deployed personnel to the disputed Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC).

Walson-Jack made the clarification on Monday while appearing before the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee investigating the controversy surrounding the purported council and the N1.3 billion reportedly allocated to it in the 2026 Appropriation Act.

The Head of Service said her office received a request for the deployment of officers to the council but no personnel were ultimately deployed by her office.

“The request for deployment of officers was received and noted for consideration. However, there was no deployment of officers by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation to the council,” she told the committee.

She also dismissed reports that the PFIPC occupied office space within the Federal Secretariat in Abuja, saying her office had no role in allocating any premises to the disputed organisation.

“While there is speculation that the council occupied office space in the Federal Secretariat Phase Three, we can state categorically that the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation did not allocate any office space to the PFIPC,” she said.

According to Walson-Jack, the purported council had approached her office seeking approval for its organisational structure. However, the request was not approved because the organisation failed to provide the necessary documentation establishing its status and existence.

She explained that while the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation has responsibility for approving conditions of service for government agencies, there was no record of an approved request from the PFIPC in that regard.

“Meanwhile, remuneration and emoluments of personnel are not under the purview of the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation but under the purview of the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission,” she said.

She added that the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission is responsible for determining the remuneration of political appointees and chief executive officers.

Walson-Jack said newly established government organisations are required to submit an establishment Act or other valid legal instruments confirming their existence before requests relating to their structure and staffing can be processed.

The Head of Service further told the lawmakers that officials who presented themselves as representatives of the PFIPC had participated in the 2025 annual workforce projection and human resources event.

According to her, the officials claimed that the organisation was already operating with personnel seconded from other government agencies.

She said the purported council subsequently requested an authorised establishment and recruitment waiver to enable it to employ substantive staff, claiming that 14 officials were already working with the organisation.

Walson-Jack, however, clarified that the recruitment and placement of personnel within government agencies were not directly under the purview of her office.

“We also wish to state that recruitment and placement of staff in agencies or into agencies is not under the purview of the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation. It is the responsibility of the agencies to recruit and carry out proper placement of their staff,” she said.

She also disclosed that the organisation submitted copies of what it described as its director-general's appointment letter, alongside documents indicating that it had been assigned a budget code.

The testimony adds another layer to the ongoing investigation into the controversial PFIPC, which has been the subject of conflicting claims by government institutions.

Adeniyi Adeyemi, who allegedly presented himself as the director-general of the purported council, had claimed that he was appointed by the Chief of Staff to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila.

Adeyemi also allegedly claimed that he paid money to Gbajabiamila in connection with the appointment.

Gbajabiamila has denied the allegations and instituted legal proceedings against Adeyemi, who was arrested in Osun State on July 14.

The Presidency has also denied that the purported council exists and accused Adeyemi of forging the appointment letter.

The latest testimony from the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation is expected to form part of the House committee's efforts to determine how the disputed PFIPC allegedly secured recognition within parts of the government system, including claims relating to its organisational structure, staffing, budget code and access to public resources.

The committee is also expected to examine the roles played by various government institutions in the controversy and establish how an organisation whose legal status has been disputed could have been associated with official administrative and financial processes.