President Bola Tinubu has directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately return to 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 undermine public confidence in the credibility of the electoral process.
In a personally signed statement issued on Thursday, the President said he was “deeply embarrassed” by the timing of the EFCC’s action, stressing that although the anti-graft agency obtained a valid court order on August 5, 2026, he had no prior knowledge of the move.
“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. 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,” Tinubu said.
The President reaffirmed his commitment to the operational independence of anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies, noting that he has consistently avoided interfering in their activities since assuming office.
“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,” he stated.
Tinubu said while institutions established by law must be allowed to exercise their constitutional mandates without political interference, the circumstances surrounding the EFCC’s latest action warranted presidential intervention.
“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,” he said.
The President warned that with the Osun governorship election only days away, no action should create the impression that federal institutions were being used to influence the outcome of the poll.
“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,” Tinubu said.
He added that preserving public confidence in Nigeria’s democratic institutions and electoral process informed his directive to the anti-graft agency.
“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.”
The President’s directive came barely a day after the EFCC defended its decision to freeze the Osun State Government’s accounts, insisting the action formed part of an ongoing investigation and was not intended to influence the forthcoming governorship election.
