Former Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, has faulted the Presidency’s defence of Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, over the alleged activities of Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, insisting that the official explanation raises more questions than it answers.
Reacting to a statement by presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga, which absolved Gbajabiamila of any wrongdoing, Dalung argued that the Presidency failed to address how what it now describes as a fictitious presidential agency allegedly operated within government circles without detection.
According to him, regardless of the outcome of the ongoing criminal proceedings against Adeyemi, Nigerians deserve a comprehensive explanation of how an individual allegedly established a fake government agency, forged an appointment letter, operated from the Federal Secretariat, recruited personnel, engaged government institutions, met diplomats and reportedly secured a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) account without triggering official scrutiny.
“The issue goes beyond whether the Chief of Staff knew the suspect or not. The Presidency must explain how such an elaborate operation allegedly flourished within government institutions unchecked,” Dalung said.
He also questioned reports that the purported agency was captured in the national budget, arguing that budget proposals pass through rigorous executive and legislative processes before approval.
“If the council was fake, explain how it entered the budget,” he said, asking the Presidency to identify those who introduced, processed and approved the budget provision.
Dalung further demanded clarification on how office space was allegedly allocated to the organisation within the Federal Secretariat, querying which authority approved the allocation and why the operation escaped the attention of relevant government agencies.
The former minister also raised concerns over the circumstances surrounding the death of Dolapo Babatunde Tanimola, whom investigators reportedly identified as the person Adeyemi claimed facilitated the alleged forged appointment letter before dying in a hotel fire days before the suspect’s arrest.
He questioned whether investigators had carried out a comprehensive probe into Tanimola’s death, including an autopsy, coroner’s inquest and forensic examination of his communications and financial records.
While acknowledging that the allegations against Adeyemi are before the court, Dalung maintained that prosecuting one individual should not end the matter.
He said the government must account for the role of public institutions that allegedly interacted with, or failed to detect, what the Presidency now insists was a fictitious agency.
Dalung urged the Presidency to publish documentary evidence, timelines and official records explaining the alleged inclusion of the agency in the national budget, its reported operations from the Federal Secretariat and what he described as the apparent failure of institutional safeguards.
His remarks come amid mounting political scrutiny over the controversy, with opposition figures arguing that the Presidency’s attempt to clear Gbajabiamila has instead intensified demands for greater transparency over the alleged operations of the purported agency.