Tanimola is the Yoruba word for ‘Who knows tomorrow?’ And because no one knows tomorrow, Dolapo Babatunde Tanimola probably did not know that he would no longer be around when the allegations against him broke the internet.

Until this week, the name Dolapo Babatunde Tanimola meant little outside a small circle of associates. But after the Presidency identified the late Tanimola as the man Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi allegedly told investigators helped him obtain the disputed appointment letter at the heart of the controversial “phantom council” saga, attention shifted to the man whose death has left one of the case’s most critical links beyond the reach of investigators.

A collection of photographs obtained by Daily Trust shows Tanimola in the company of several prominent Nigerian leaders and public officials before his death.

Among those pictured with him are former President Goodluck Jonathan, former Head of State Gen. Yakubu Gowon (retd); billionaire businessmen Tony Elumelu and Abdulsamad Rabiu; three former Inspectors-General of Police—Mike Okiro, Solomon Arase and Kayode Egbetokun— Philanthropist Arthur Eze; Deputy Governor of Lagos and All Progressives Congress (APC) Governorship Candidate, Engr Obafemi Hamzat, Vice-Presidential Candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso and so on.

The photographs, taken at different occasions over time, portray a man who appeared to enjoy access to Nigeria’s political and public leadership. While the images do not, by themselves, suggest any connection between the personalities or show they had knowledge of the activities now under investigation, they have intensified public curiosity about Tanimola’s identity, background and influence.

The renewed interest follows the Presidency’s detailed response to allegations made by Adeyemi, who had claimed to be the Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, an agency the Presidency insists never existed.

In a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency described Adeyemi as an impostor who allegedly forged his appointment letter, impersonated a government official and is currently standing trial on an eight-count charge bordering on forgery, impersonation and obtaining by false pretence.

According to the Presidency, during police interrogation following his arrest in October 2025, Adeyemi allegedly told investigators that Tanimola was the person who helped him procure the appointment letter he relied upon to present himself as Director-General of the purported council.

Investigators, however, were unable to question Tanimola. His death has also left detectives without the opportunity to question the one person Adeyemi allegedly identified as the source of the controversial appointment letter. The Presidency said police efforts to trace him revealed that he had died in a fire incident at Kachi Hotel in Utako, Abuja, on October 22, 2025—five days before Adeyemi’s arrest.

It added that investigators verified his death through visits to the hospital where his body was deposited, interviews with his relatives, the hotel proprietor and records relating to his burial.

Aside from these disclosures, however, very little has been made public about Tanimola but sources told Daily Trust that he was laid to rest after a funeral service at Saint Mathew Anglican Church, Maitama, Abuja, on November 8, 2025.

The Presidency did not disclose his occupation, official affiliation or explain how he allegedly became involved in procuring the disputed appointment letter. Equally unclear is the nature of his relationship with Adeyemi, why Adeyemi identified him during police interrogation, or whether investigators recovered any documentary or digital evidence linking Tanimola to the alleged forgery before his death.

Public records also provide little information about him before his name surfaced in the Presidency’s account of the investigation. That information gap has become even more striking with the emergence of photographs showing Tanimola alongside high-profile political leaders and public officials.

The images suggest he moved within influential circles and attended events where he had access to prominent personalities. As far as the controversy is concerned, the salient questions are Who exactly was Dolapo Babatunde Tanimola? What role, if any, did he play in the events leading to the creation of the disputed appointment letter? How did he come to enjoy apparent access to senior political figures? Was there independent evidence corroborating Adeyemi’s claim about his alleged involvement?

For now, those questions remain unanswered.

As the criminal proceedings against Adeyemi continue, the late Tanimola remains one of the most intriguing and elusive figures in a controversy that has drawn national attention.

This is not because he has been accused in court, but because the Presidency itself identified him as a key figure in the chain of events surrounding one of the most controversial impersonation cases to emerge in recent years.

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