The purported Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC), Adeniyi Adeyemi, has rejected plans by the House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating the controversial council to question him behind closed doors, insisting that any appearance before lawmakers should be conducted in public.
Adeyemi, through his lawyer, Ademola Oyedokun, said on Wednesday that while his client welcomed the National Assembly’s probe into the establishment and operations of the PFIPC, he opposed the committee’s decision to interrogate him at an undisclosed location while he remains in police custody.
According to the lawyer, fairness and transparency require that Adeyemi be given the opportunity to publicly respond to allegations already made against him during the committee’s open hearings.
“We have read that the committee intends to interview our client at an undisclosed date and place. We ask it, respectfully, to think again. Everyone else in this matter has been heard in public, and what has been said about our client was said in public.
He should be allowed to answer in the same place it was said,” Oyedokun said.
The lawyer urged the committee to invoke its constitutional powers under Section 89 of the 1999 Constitution to compel the Nigeria Police Force to produce Adeyemi before a public hearing.
He said the provision empowers the committee to summon any individual and compel attendance, adding that his client was prepared to appear before lawmakers with his legal team on any date fixed by the committee.
“He will attend on any date it names, with his counsel, and answer every question put to him,” he stated.
Oyedokun maintained that while the criminal allegations against Adeyemi would be addressed before the Federal High Court and relevant investigative agencies, the House inquiry was focused on a separate issue—how the PFIPC was created and whether government officials acted upon it.
According to him, Nigerians deserve to hear Adeyemi’s account in an open session.
“Our client does not ask the committee to compromise any investigation. He will answer in public the questions this committee was constituted to ask and will reserve, upon legal advice, any question touching a matter before a court or an agency.
“We will not argue our client’s case in a press statement. The allegations are before the Federal High Court and before several agencies, and they will be answered there, on oath.
“But this committee is asking a different question: how this council came to exist, and who in government acted upon it. That question our client is anxious to answer, and Nigerians are entitled to hear it answered in public,” he added.
The lawyer also challenged the legality of Adeyemi’s continued detention, arguing that the bench warrant relied upon by the police only authorised his arrest and production before the Federal High Court, not his prolonged detention.
According to him, no valid court order committing Adeyemi to custody had been served on his client.
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The House of Representatives ad hoc committee, chaired by Yusuf Gagdi, had on Tuesday announced plans to question Adeyemi at an undisclosed location while he remains in police custody.
Gagdi said the arrangement was intended to avoid interfering with ongoing investigations being conducted by the Nigeria Police Force, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
He explained that the committee had invited Adeyemi but was informed by the police that he remained in custody pursuant to a court order.
According to the lawmaker, the House would not undermine the judiciary or violate the principle of separation of powers by attempting to override an existing court directive.
The ad hoc committee is investigating allegations surrounding the establishment and operations of the PFIPC, including claims of impersonation, forgery, financial impropriety and the unlawful use of government facilities and official insignia.
