Self acclaimed Director-General of the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, has defended the establishment of the body, insisting it was conceived to boost foreign investment and improve Nigeria's global image.
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Matthew spoke during a video interview with social media personality Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan, amid the ongoing investigation into the council, which the Presidency has declared non-existent.
He said the initiative was driven by his desire to contribute to national development by positioning Nigeria as a preferred destination for international investors, rather than by personal ambition.
According to him, any funds he committed towards setting up the organisation were spent out of commitment to national service, adding that he hoped the project would attract global investors and leave a positive legacy.
He maintained that he had no hand in the controversial budgetary allocation reportedly made to the council, stressing that he neither prepared nor defended any proposal before the National Assembly.
Matthew explained that he was in police custody for about 23 days during the period the 2026 budget was being processed, arguing that he could not have influenced the appropriation.
He questioned the Presidency's insistence that the council was fictitious, saying it remained unclear how an organisation later disowned by the government eventually received an allocation in the national budget.
The embattled claimant disclosed that former Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, had questioned him over his appointment, after which he provided investigators with the identity and telephone number of the individual who facilitated his appointment letter before he was detained.
He further alleged that by the time he regained his freedom in November 2025, he had already been charged to court, while the office initially assigned to the council had been allocated to another government official.
Speaking on allegations involving the President's Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, Matthew said he never met him physically over the matter but admitted they once spoke on the telephone through his late associate, Dolapo Tanimola.
He also expressed readiness to cooperate with investigators, saying he would submit all documents in his possession to the police and the Department of State Services to assist ongoing investigations.
Matthew added that Tanimola, whom he described as the person who financed the creation of the council, later died in a fire incident at a hotel in Utako, Abuja.
The controversy surrounding the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council erupted after the body appeared among agencies allocated funds in the 2026 Appropriation Act despite the Presidency maintaining that it neither established nor recognised the council.
Following the public outcry, President Bola Tinubu directed the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission to investigate how the council found its way into the national budget and identify those responsible for the alleged insertion.
Matthew was earlier arrested and arraigned on charges bordering on forgery, impersonation and related offences.
However, he has continued to insist that every document in his possession was lawfully obtained.
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