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ARISE News analyst Dayo Sobowale has said the alleged fake Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council scandal exposed serious failures within Nigeria’s public service, arguing that government institutions failed to detect the organisation despite years of administrative processes.
Speaking during an interview with ARISE News, Sobowale said the controversy was not merely about one individual but about widespread institutional negligence.
“It is a case of gross administrative negligence and a very serious one.”
He stated that available information suggested the alleged fake agency had been in existence since 2020, questioning how it was able to pass through several layers of government without being uncovered.
“This fake agency has been in existence since 2020. It sought permission to get office space, and the Office of the Head of Service could not approve it because it could not present the required documents.”
Sobowale said standard civil service procedures should have exposed irregularities surrounding the agency’s operations long before the matter came to public attention.
“In the civil service, you have the staff list, the staff deployment list and the staff seniority list. Are you telling me that with the staff of this fake agency, nobody was able to raise eyebrows and say something was amiss?”
He emphasized that the scandal pointed to broader administrative failures involving several government institutions responsible for oversight and coordination.
“The Office of the Head of Service, the Office of the Secretary to the Government and virtually every arm of government involved in establishing ministries and agencies should have detected it.”
Calling for sweeping reforms, Sobowale said the government should undertake a comprehensive audit of ministries, departments and agencies to strengthen accountability and eliminate inefficiencies.
“Government and the civil service should carry out a thorough overhaul and reinvestigation of institutions, staffing and administrative processes.”
He warned that the existence of an alleged fake agency for years raised concerns about the integrity of government records and personnel management.
“If we do not know the source of the staff working in our ministries, then we are in serious trouble.”
Commenting on the ongoing probe, Sobowale said the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) was right to investigate the matter following President Bola Tinubu’s directive, expressing hope that all relevant institutions would cooperate fully.
He maintained that beyond criminal investigations, the incident should serve as a wake-up call for government to strengthen internal controls and prevent similar administrative failures in the future.
Ojo Triumph
