President Bola Tinubu has directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately approach the court to vacate the order freezing the bank accounts of the Osun State Government, saying the timing of the action, coming just days before the state’s governorship election, could create the impression of federal interference in the poll.
The President also instructed the anti-graft agency to discontinue all related actions connected to the freezing of the state’s accounts.
In a statement on Thursday, Tinubu said he was “deeply embarrassed” by the timing of the EFCC’s action, stressing that although the commission acted pursuant to a court order and within its statutory mandate, the public would inevitably attribute the development to his administration.
“I feel deeply embarrassed not by the EFCC’s exercise of its mandate under a court order, but by the timing of the action,” the President said.
“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.”
Tinubu reiterated that he has consistently maintained that anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies must operate independently, professionally and without political interference.
According to him, he has deliberately refrained from interfering in the operational activities of the EFCC and other investigative agencies since assuming office.
However, he said the decision to freeze Osun State’s accounts at a time the state is preparing for its governorship election was ill-timed.
“The timing is inauspicious because Osun State is only a few days away from its gubernatorial election,” the President said.
“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.”
The President’s directive comes less than a day after the EFCC publicly defended its decision to obtain a court order freezing the accounts of the Osun State Government.
The commission had said it began investigating the state government in March 2026 over the alleged fraudulent handling of Ecology Funds, Intervention Funds and allocations from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) amounting to about N11 billion.
According to the EFCC, several officials of the state government, including the Accountant General, had been questioned as part of the investigation.
The anti-graft agency explained that although the investigation had been ongoing for months, it only sought a Post No Debit order after discovering what it described as “precipitate and unwarranted” movement of public funds from government accounts into several corporate entities beginning on August 2, 2026.
“The Commission noticed huge transfers of funds into different corporate entities and had to swiftly halt the trend by freezing the accounts from which such heavy funds are being moved,” the EFCC had said.
The commission insisted that the action was taken to prevent the alleged looting of public funds and was not politically motivated despite the proximity of the governorship election.
It also stated that several other states were under similar financial scrutiny, maintaining that it remained “non-partisan and non-sectarian” in carrying out its investigative responsibilities.
“The Osun State government account was frozen to save public funds from being looted,” the commission said, urging Nigerians to disregard what it described as false narratives aimed at discrediting its work.
Tinubu’s intervention is expected to ease political tension in Osun, where the freezing of the state’s accounts had triggered controversy amid heightened political activities ahead of the governorship election.
The President’s directive also marks a rare public intervention in the operational decisions of the EFCC, although he maintained that his concern was solely with preserving public confidence in the credibility of the electoral process.
(SaharaReporters)