The House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee probing the alleged operations of the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) has declared the appointment letter presented by the council’s self-acclaimed Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi, as fake.

Chairman of the committee, Yusuf Gagdi, made the announcement on Wednesday during the continuation of the investigative hearing in Abuja.

Gagdi said the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Esther Walson-Jack, who appeared before the panel for the second time, confirmed that the appointment documents submitted by Adeyemi were not genuine.

According to the lawmaker, investigations by relevant government agencies established that the purported appointment letter was forged. He also disclosed that the Act allegedly used to justify the establishment of the council and presented to the Office of the Head of the Civil Service was equally fake.

“It was established that the so-called letter of appointment was fake, confirmed by different agencies, and the Act presented to the Head of Service was equally fake, forged by the DG; it was established,” Gagdi said.

Walson-Jack appeared before the committee in compliance with its summons to make her final submissions on the ongoing investigation.

Also present at the hearing were Deputy Commissioner of Police Olufemi Akinola and Assistant Commissioner of Police Bashir Abdullahi, representing the Inspector-General of Police.

Adeyemi, however, failed to appear before the committee.

At its previous sitting on Monday, the committee described the creation and operations of the purported Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council as a serious violation of due process and directed the Inspector-General of Police to produce Adeyemi within 48 hours.

Lawmakers maintained that his appearance before the panel is crucial to explain how the council allegedly secured official recognition and processed government correspondence as investigations into its activities continue.