The Senate of Nigeria has denied responsibility for the controversial allocation of about N1.3bn to the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council in the 2026 Appropriation Act, insisting that the budget line was neither created nor inserted by the National Assembly.
The position was made known by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Yemi Adaramodu, during a briefing at the National Assembly on Tuesday.
Adaramodu said the Senate had no petition before it on the matter and, therefore, had no basis to commence a legislative investigation into the controversy.
“There is no petition before the Senate on the matter,” he said.
He maintained that the allegations and counter allegations surrounding the alleged agency and its purported Director-General were issues within the executive arm of government.
“The allegations and counter allegations over fake agency and fake Director-General are all within the Executive, which should sort them out, specifically between the Office of the Chief of Staff and the alleged fake Director-General,” Adaramodu said.
The controversy followed claims that about N1.3bn was allocated to the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, an agency the Presidency has insisted does not exist. The allegations have also drawn in the Chief of Staff to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, and the alleged Director-General of the agency, Adeyemi Mathew, over conflicting claims.
Adaramodu, however, stressed that although the agency appeared in the 2026 Appropriation Act, the National Assembly was not responsible for creating or inserting the budget provision.
“The budget line being referred to was not created or inserted by the National Assembly, and it is not the duty of the Senate or the House of Representatives to carry out security checks on those supposedly appointed to head the various MDAs,” he said.
He added that the matter was already before a court, making further comments inappropriate in line with parliamentary rules.
“If the alleged fake Director-General were one of the presidential appointees screened and confirmed by the Senate, the controversy might have been perceived to be somewhat linked to us,” he added.
The Senate spokesman, however, said the upper chamber remained open to investigating the matter if a formal petition was submitted.
“If a petition is sent to the Senate by any of the feuding parties or any concerned Nigerian on the existence or non-existence of the agency or the Director-General, it will be legislatively looked into,” Adaramodu said.
