The Federal High Court, Abuja Division, on Tuesday issued a warrant of arrest against the embattled Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC), Adeniyi Adeyemi, who accused the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, Femi Gbajabiamila, of collecting N400 million bribe from him.
The court gave the order following Mr Adeyemi’s failure to appear for scheduled arraignment.
Judge Mohammed Umar issued the warrant of arrest while rescheduling Mr Adeyemi’s arraignment for September 30.
Mr Adeyemi is to be arraigned on an eight-count charge
The presidency has, however, dismissed Mr Adeyemi’s allegation, claiming that he was a con-artist heading a fictitous agency, even though evidence shows the agency got funding from the country’s annual budget and operated from the federal secretariat.
Also, Mr Adeyemi, in an interview with Channels TV on Monday, insisted that the chief of staff collected a bribe of N400 million in exchange for his appointment as the director general of the purported fake agency.
Asked how he raised the huge sum of money to buy the agency appoinment, Mr Adeyemi said, “I borrowed this money (N400 million). In fact, those that I borrowed this N400 million from have reported me to the EFCC. I borrowed the money to pay for this appointment. I’m even yet to repay the money.”
Asked about the allegations that he once paraded himself as a United Nations ambassador, Mr Adeyemi said, “It is all sponsored. It is a campaign of calumny.”
Last week, amid public outrage trailing Mr Adeyemi’s allegations, President Bola Tinubu ordered the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to probe Mr Gbajabiamila and others allegedly involved in the PFIPC bribery and forgery scandal.
While the Mr Adeyemi’s allegations against Mr Gbajabiamila had yet to be resolved, Peoples Gazette on Monday exclusively reported how Mr Gbajabiamila used fake law to corner N54 billion oil revenue from NUPRC.