Tinubu Orders EFCC To Unfreeze Osun Accounts Ahead Of Guber Election

President Bola Tinubu has ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to take immediate steps to reverse the court order that froze the bank accounts of the Osun State Government.

In a statement personally signed on Thursday, the president said he was not questioning the EFCC’s legal authority to obtain the court order.

He, however, expressed concern that the action came just days before the August 15 governorship election in Osun.

Tinubu said the development left him embarrassed because many Nigerians often assume that decisions made by federal agencies are carried out on his instructions, even when he has no prior knowledge of them.

“It has come to my notice that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) obtained a court order on August 5, 2026, freezing the accounts of the Osun State Government,” 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.”

Tinubu explained that his administration has always allowed anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies to perform their duties independently without political interference.

According to him, strengthening government institutions requires allowing them to operate within the law.

“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,” Tinubu said.

He stressed that no action by any federal agency should create the impression that the government is trying to influence the outcome of the Osun governorship election.

“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,” he said.

To avoid such concerns, the president directed the EFCC to return to court immediately, cancel the order freezing the state’s accounts and end the legal action related to the matter.

“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,” he said.

The EFCC had announced on Wednesday that it froze the accounts as part of an investigation into the alleged misuse of public funds by the Osun State Government.

The commission said its investigation began in March and that several government officials, including the state’s Accountant-General, had already been questioned.

According to the EFCC, investigators discovered large transfers from government accounts to several corporate organisations beginning on August 2 while the investigation was ongoing.

The Osun State Government rejected the EFCC’s explanation.

In a statement, the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, accused the commission of trying to justify an unlawful action with baseless allegations.

Alimi claimed the accounts were frozen to prevent the state government from paying workers the palliatives it had earlier promised.

He also alleged that the action was carried out on the instructions of former Osun State Governor Gboyega Oyetola.

The dispute comes as political activities intensify ahead of the August 15 governorship election.

Governor Ademola Adeleke, who is seeking another term in office under the Accord Party, is facing strong competition from the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is hoping to regain control of the state.

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