Former Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, has condemned the Presidency’s reaction to the alleged actions of one Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, who was recently detained over his connection to the nonexistent Presidential Economic Advisory Council.
In a statement issued on July 1, Presidential media aide, Bayo Onanuga, refuted allegations that the Presidency was aware of Adeyemi’s actions. Adeyemi claimed to be the Director-General of two sham agencies: the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council.
Onanuga stated that Adeyemi’s activities came to light after the Nigerian Investment Promotion Council observed irregularities.
This discovery led Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, to initiate a police and DSS investigation on October 17, 2025. Adeyemi reportedly held a meeting with foreign ambassadors at a luxury hotel and attempted to deceive the Ministry of Foreign Affairs into issuing a note verbale to obtain US visas for his staff.
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Onanuga also revealed that the police found Adeyemi operated 34 bank accounts, nine of which were linked to fake agencies, and he even misled the Accountant-General into opening a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) account, though no government funds were ever deposited.
In response to Onanuga’s comments, Dalung noted that while the Presidency tried to clear the Chief of Staff, its explanation revealed serious deficiencies in government oversight.
Dalung raised concerns about how an individual could allegedly create a fake government agency, forge an appointment letter, work from the Federal Secretariat, recruit staff, engage with government bodies, meet diplomats, obtain a Central Bank of Nigeria account, and even have the fraudulent agency included in the national budget.
