PFIPC probe: Businessman tells Reps how he paid N400m for contract

A businessman has told the House of Representatives that he paid N400 million for a contract to renovate and furnish what was presented as the official residence of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) chief executive.

Mr. Gbenga Collins, Managing Director of Divine Dopacy Nigeria Limited, testified before the House Ad-hoc Committee investigating the PFIPC. He stated that his familiarity with the purported Director-General, Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi, and the official trappings surrounding him convinced him the council was legitimate.

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When I arrived at the airport, he sent an official car to come and pick me from the airport to his office at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja.

Collins, who met Adeyemi in their hometown of Ogbomoso, was invited to Abuja and picked up in an official vehicle. He described seeing police officers, government vehicles, and a functioning government office, which further solidified his belief in Adeyemi's claims. Adeyemi presented himself as the Director-General of both the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC) and the PFIPC.

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I saw police officers with him. That was my first time coming to Abuja because I’m not familiar with Abuja very well. He sent his official car to pick me from the airport. It had a Federal Government registration number attached to the Lexus SUV.