Tinubu Directs EFCC to Vacate Court Order Freezing Osun Government Accounts
By Nafiu Muhammad Lema
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately approach the court to vacate an order freezing the accounts of the Osun State Government.
The President, in a statement on Thursday, August 6, 2026, said the EFCC obtained the court order on August 5, but expressed concern over the timing of the action, coming just days before the Osun State governorship election.
Tinubu said he was “deeply embarrassed” not by the EFCC’s exercise of its statutory mandate, but by the timing of the action, noting that decisions by federal institutions are often attributed to the President even when he may have had no prior knowledge of them.
The President reiterated his commitment to the independence of anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies, stressing that he has consistently refrained from interfering in the operational activities of the EFCC and other investigative or prosecutorial institutions.
According to him, strong democratic institutions operating within the law are essential to good governance, democracy and the rule of law.
Tinubu, however, said the proximity of the Osun governorship election made the EFCC action “inauspicious,” as it could create the impression that the commission or another federal agency was being used to interfere with the electoral process.
“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,” the President said.
He explained that although he had not been fully briefed on the facts behind the EFCC’s application for the freezing order, the overriding public interest required him to intervene to preserve confidence in the democratic process.
Tinubu therefore directed the EFCC to immediately return to court, seek the vacation of the order and discontinue any action it had instituted against the Osun State Government in connection with the matter.
The President reaffirmed his commitment to protecting the integrity, credibility and fairness of Nigeria’s democratic process.
