The House of Representatives has inaugurated an adhoc committee to investigate the legal basis for the establishment and operations of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC).
The panel will also investigate the circumstances surrounding the inclusion of the council in the Federal Government’s budget framework, it was reported.
The inauguration of the committee took place in Abuja on Monday and was addressed by the Speaker of the House, Tajudeen Abbas, who said the inquiry was to determine the facts on the creation, mandate and activities of the council.
He rejected accusations that the investigation was politically motivated or intended to provoke public discussion about the council.
“The House of Representatives did not create this committee to validate speculation or to amplify controversy. This is not a political exercise, either. “Our goal is merely to get to the facts,” Abbas said.
The Speaker said the decision to set up the committee was to address the increasing public concern regarding the legal status, institutional mandate and operational structure of the PFIPC.
Questions had also been raised about the council’s relationship with existing government agencies that are responsible for attracting and promoting investment, he added.
Abbas said the House has a constitutional responsibility to provide oversight in a manner that promotes transparency, accountability and good governance.
Abbas told the committee to check whether the council was legally constituted and whether the proper constitutional and statutory procedures had been followed.
The panel is also expected to probe the mandate, governance structure, sources of funding and operational activities of the PFIPC.
It will also look at the council’s connections with existing statutory bodies and if its remit overlaps with those of other agencies.
The Committee was also tasked to consider the integration of the PFIPC in the budgetary framework of the Federal Government.
The expectation is to find out whether due budgetary processes were followed before the allocation of funds to the council.
Abbas asked the panel to suggest any needed legislative, administrative or institutional reforms to improve fiscal responsibility, transparency and accountability.
Read Also: PFIPC Suspect Adeyemi Explains How ‘Fake Agency’ Entered 2026 Budget
Stakeholders Urged to Collaborate
The Speaker called on ministries, departments and agencies, constitutional bodies, civil society organisations, experts and other relevant stakeholders to assist the probe.
He asked them to provide the committee with all information and evidence necessary to establish the facts.
Abbas also urged the members of the panel to do the exercise in a fair, impartial and strict adherence to the Constitution and the rule of law.
Chairman of the committee, Yusuf Gagdi, assured the House that the investigation would be professional and objective.
The panel, he said, would examine the circumstances in which the council was created and is functioning, and if the existing legal and constitutional processes were followed.
“The committee will solicit the views of all relevant stakeholders before forwarding its findings and recommendations to the House,” Gagdi added.
He promised that all persons and institutions involved in the probe would be given a fair hearing.
He said the proceedings would be governed by natural justice, transparency and due process.
The committee held its first sitting shortly after the inauguration and will receive memoranda and testimonies from stakeholders as part of the investigation.
