PFIPC: Lawal Seeks Judicial Inquiry, Says It is Evidence of an Administrative Failure

Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, has demanded a judicial inquiry into the controversy surrounding the alleged Presidential Fiscal and Infrastructure Projects Council (PFIPC). Lawal argues that the scandal points to profound institutional failures within the government, rather than being a mere administrative oversight.

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I don’t think it should even be administrative alone; it should be a judicial inquiry.

In an interview with ARISE NEWS, Lawal expressed his belief that the circumstances surrounding the alleged PFIPC suggest the existence of a broad network that allowed it to operate within government processes, despite questions about its legal standing. He insisted that an administrative investigation alone would be insufficient to uncover the full extent of the issue.

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Who gave him the money? It was not appropriated for; it’s not in any budget, that N27.5bn Naira for which he says somebody demanded 48%.

Lawal raised serious questions about the alleged ₦27.5 billion take-off grant linked to the agency. He questioned how such substantial funds could be approved and released if the organization lacked a legal basis. "Who gave him the money? It was not appropriated for; it’s not in any budget, that N27.5bn Naira for which he says somebody demanded 48%," Lawal queried, highlighting the lack of budgetary approval for the disbursed funds.

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We are just talking about the tip of the iceberg here. Down there, before we got to here, N27.5bn had already been disbursed, according to him, as a take-off grant. How did that money get to him? It was not in the budget.

The former SGF emphasized that the current public attention is likely just the "tip of the iceberg." He expressed alarm that such significant funds could be disbursed to a potentially fictitious organization before any budgetary scrutiny. Lawal concluded that the controversy became public not because government oversight mechanisms functioned effectively, but due to disagreements over the sharing of the funds.

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So this is what should frighten us. If such money can go to a fictitious organisation, we only now begin to see it when we are quarrelling about how it got into the budget. How did that money get to them?