The Presidency on Wednesday rejected claims linking the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, to an alleged appointment-for-cash deal. It described his accuser, Adeniyi Matthew, who claimed to be Director General of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council/Presidential Economic Advisory Council, as an impostor.
Matthew had alleged that Gbajabiamila demanded N27.4bn from the take-off grant of the supposed agency. He also claimed the Chief of Staff received N400m through proxies to secure his appointment as director-general, leaving an unpaid balance of N200m.
He said the dispute over the outstanding payment caused tensions and further alleged there were attempts to assassinate him. Matthew also called for an independent panel, including civil society and international organisations, to investigate the claims, asked Gbajabiamila to step aside, and urged that the findings be made public.
But in a statement on Wednesday, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, dismissed the allegations as false and described Matthew as a serial con artist.
The Presidency said security agencies had been investigating Matthew since October 2025 after the Office of the Chief of Staff petitioned the Department of State Services and the Nigeria Police Force over the alleged forgery of appointment letters and impersonation of government officials.
“The attention of this office has been drawn to the activities of certain individuals and groups engaged in the forgery of official appointment letters purportedly issued from my office,” the Chief of Staff stated in the petition.
“The above development not only constitutes a serious criminal act but also undermines the integrity of the Presidency and the credibility of official government communication.
“I therefore urge you to initiate a thorough investigation to identify and apprehend those involved and also to uncover the network facilitating the forgery.”
The statement said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also raised concerns after Matthew allegedly held a meeting with ambassadors in Abuja without involving the ministry.
It added that the Office of the National Security Adviser and the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation later sought clarification about the status of the supposed agency.
In response, Gbajabiamila said he neither appointed Matthew nor recognised the agency.
“Prince Adeniyi Matthew, Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, is unknown to any office, nor do we have any dealings with the said council.
“My attention was drawn to a letter of this purported application, which is fake, and my office has instructed the police and other relevant security agencies to carry out investigations on the person and the entity he claims to represent,” the Chief of Staff wrote.
The Presidency said police found the agency was fictitious and that Adeyemi forged his appointment letter and other official documents while posing as a government appointee. Investigators also searched his Abuja office and Suleja home, where they recovered documents they said were linked to the alleged fraud.
The statement added that police found Matthew operated 34 bank accounts, including nine allegedly opened in the names of fictitious agencies, and fraudulently opened a Central Bank of Nigeria account by misleading the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.
“The act of the suspect constitutes criminal forgery, impersonation and obtaining by false pretence, thereby bringing the office of the Chief of Staff to the President and the Presidency to disrepute before the public and international community,” the police report quoted in the statement read.
The Presidency said Matthew and two others were arraigned before the Federal High Court in Abuja on an eight-count charge in November 2025. The case is scheduled for hearing on July 27.
It said Matthew made the latest allegations while on police bail and that they contradicted the statement he earlier gave investigators.
“His new claim prompted the Chief of Staff, on June 8, to issue a disclaimer consistent with earlier advisories that the man, called Adeyemi, is an impostor,” the statement said.
The Presidency urged politicians and the public not to accept Matthew’s claims, saying the matter is already before the court.
“Politicians and members of the public who are weaponising Adeyemi’s claim against the Chief of Staff should refrain from swallowing his narrative hook, line and sinker. They are advised to await the trial of Adeyemi and his accomplices, as well as the court’s judgement, as comments made today are sub judice.”
