PFIPC Saga Deepens as Police Detain Adeyemi’s Father

The controversy surrounding the disputed Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) took another twist on Monday after the Nigeria Police arrested the father of Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, the man claiming to be the council’s Director-General despite the Federal Government’s insistence that the body does not exist.

Police operatives reportedly stormed the family’s residence in Ogbomoso, Oyo State, where they arrested Adeyemi’s father alongside a family friend who was visiting the home at the time.

The operation was said to have left Adeyemi’s elderly mother distressed, while the circumstances surrounding the arrests immediately sparked fresh concerns over due process and the legality of detaining relatives of a suspect.

Senior Advocate of Nigeria and human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, condemned the action, describing it as an unlawful case of substituted arrest.

“The father has been arrested. There is no legal basis for substituted arrests. The young man has promised to show up in court, so why arrest his father?” Falana said.

As of the time of filing this report, the Nigeria Police Force had not issued an official statement explaining the reasons for the arrests.

The latest development comes amid an ongoing criminal case involving Adeyemi, whose claim to the leadership of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council has been rejected by the Presidency.

The controversy began after Adeyemi publicly presented himself as the Director-General of the PFIPC, an organisation the Presidency later declared non-existent. The Office of the Chief of Staff to the President subsequently warned government agencies, diplomatic missions and the public to disregard the council and any documents issued in its name.

Authorities alleged that Adeyemi used forged State House documents to secure official recognition for the council from several government institutions.

Investigations later revealed that the disputed body allegedly obtained office accommodation at the Federal Secretariat, secured budget codes and even opened accounts with the Central Bank of Nigeria before the Federal Government uncovered the alleged scheme.

Following the discovery, federal prosecutors filed an eight-count charge against Adeyemi bordering on forgery, impersonation and related offences before the Federal High Court.

The defendant has, however, maintained his innocence, insisting that his appointment was genuine and that he would challenge the allegations in court.

Monday’s arrest of Adeyemi’s father has shifted attention from the forgery allegations to the conduct of law enforcement officers, with lawyers arguing that Nigerian law does not permit the arrest or detention of family members in place of a suspect.