President Bola Tinubu has ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately seek a court order vacating the freeze on Osun State Government bank accounts, citing the proximity of the state’s governorship election as grounds for concern about perceived federal interference.
In a statement released Thursday, the president said he was “deeply embarrassed” by the timing of the anti-graft agency’s action, which came days before voters go to the polls. While acknowledging the EFCC acted pursuant to a court order and within its statutory mandate, Tinubu said the public would inevitably attribute the move to his administration.
“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,” he said.
The directive instructs the EFCC to discontinue all related actions connected to the account freeze. Tinubu emphasized his consistent position that law enforcement agencies must operate independently, professionally, and without political interference, noting he has deliberately refrained from interfering in EFCC operations since assuming office.
The commission had defended its decision a day earlier, stating it began investigating the Osun State Government over alleged fraudulent handling of ecology funds, intervention funds, and Federation Account allocations totaling approximately N11 billion. According to the EFCC, several state officials, including the Accountant General, had been questioned.
The agency said it sought a “Post No Debit” order after detecting what it described as “precipitate and unwarranted” movement of public funds into multiple corporate entities beginning in early August. The freeze, it argued, was necessary to prevent further dissipation of state assets and was not politically motivated. The EFCC noted that several other states remain under similar financial scrutiny.
Tinubu’s intervention marks a rare public override of an EFCC operational decision. His statement framed the concern strictly around preserving public confidence in the electoral process, rather than challenging the substance of the investigation.
The development is expected to de-escalate political tension in Osun, where the account freeze had become a flashpoint amid heightened campaign activity. The governorship election proceeds as scheduled.
