President Bola Tinubu has ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to vacate the order freezing the accounts of the Osun State Government. In a statement he personally signed on Thursday, the president said while he was not opposed to the EFCC’s exercise of its statutory powers, the timing of the action raised some concerns. The EFCC on Wednesday froze the account of the Osun State Government, citing alleged fraudulent handling of ecology funds, intervention funds and Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) account to the tune of N11 billion. The anti-graft agency took the action ten days to the state’s governorship election. Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord party is contesting against two major candidates: Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Najeem Salaam of the African Democratic Congress (ADC). Adeleke, who addressed journalists in Osogbo, the state capital, said the freezing of the account was unconstitutional because no court order was obtained before the directive was issued. But the EFCC explained that the state government’s account was frozen to save public funds from being looted. The commission, in a statement by its spokesman, Dele Oyewale, said some officials of the state had earlier been quizzed by investigators of the commission, saying what precipitated the freezing was the unwarranted movement of funds from the accounts to different suspicious accounts since August 2, 2026. I feel embarrassed – President President Tinubu said he feels embarrassed by the EFCC action because the timing could create the impression that the Federal Government is interfering in the state’s forthcoming governorship election. Tinubu said actions taken by federal institutions were often attributed to him as President, regardless of whether he had prior knowledge of them. He said, “I must state that I feel deeply embarrassed not by the EFCC’s exercise of its mandate backed by a court order, but by the timing of the agency’s action. “This is so because every action taken by an institution of State, especially at the Federal level, is always credited to me, as the President, even when I may not have had any prior knowledge of the action. “Since assuming office, I have consistently maintained that anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies must be allowed to discharge their statutory responsibilities independently, professionally, without fear or favour, or political interference. “I have therefore deliberately refrained from directing or interfering in the operational activities of the EFCC or any other investigative or prosecutorial agency because I firmly believe that strong democratic institutions, operating within the confines of the law, are indispensable to democratic good governance and the rule of law. “As President, I am committed to allowing institutions of State to function and take any action they consider necessary in the interest of proper governance without the need for any prior approval. Indeed, that is why institutions are set up by law with clearly defined powers. “While I am yet to be fully apprised of the facts which informed the action of EFCC in approaching the court to obtain the said order freezing the Osun State Government account, I am not in the slightest doubt that the timing of the action of EFCC is inauspicious, and therefore I feel compelled to intervene. “Osun State is only a few days away from its gubernatorial election. Therefore, nothing ought to be done to give an impression that the EFCC or indeed any other agency of the federal government is being used to interfere with the election. “Based on the foregoing premise, I am duty-bound to issue a directive on this issue in consonance with the overriding public interest in preserving public confidence and the integrity, credibility, and fairness of our democratic process. “Accordingly, I have directed the EFCC to immediately proceed to the court to vacate the order and discontinue whatever action it has instituted against the Osun State Government in this regard.” EFCC unfreezes account Efforts to get an official update from the EFCC were futile as several calls to the spokesman of the anti-graft agency, Dele Oyewale, were not answered. But a senior official at the commission confided in Daily Trust that another official letter has been sent to the management of the First Bank conveying the President’s directive to the bank. The official, who did not want his name in print because he wasn’t authorised to speak, said: “A letter has been sent to the banker to remove the PND restriction on the state government’s account following Mr President’s directive. Nobody should view this from the perspective of the fact that EFCC is not independent.” Lawyers, CSOs fault Tinubu’s directive Human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong said President Tinubu’s directive to the EFCC to unfreeze Osun State Government accounts undermined t
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