Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has defended its decision to freeze the bank accounts of the Osun State Government, insisting the action is a routine anti-corruption measure carried out in line with its mandate and not driven by politics.
Gatekeepers News reports that speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show on Thursday, EFCC Director of Public Affairs, Wilson Uwujaren, said the commission acted to prevent the diversion of public funds while investigations into the alleged fraudulent handling of ecological and intervention funds continue. He stressed that Osun was not the first state where the anti-graft agency had taken such action.
Uwujaren cited the case of Edo State ahead of the 2024 governorship transition, saying the EFCC restricted the state’s accounts after detecting suspicious movements of funds, preserving N12 billion for the incoming administration of Governor Monday Okpebholo.
“If you talk about what happened in Ekiti, we didn’t have any reason to intervene the way we are intervening now.
“But I can tell you that Osun State is not the first state that we’re taking this kind of action.
“During the Edo State election, before the coming of the governor of Okpebholo, EFCC also took actions to restrict the account of that state government when we saw that funds were being moved to suspicious accounts and we were able to preserve N12 billion for them.
“That is why the current government was able to come on board and have resources to work. So this is not targeted at any particular government. We are simply doing our work under the law.”
The EFCC had on Wednesday announced that it obtained a court order freezing the Osun Government’s bank accounts as part of an investigation into the alleged fraudulent handling of about N11 billion in ecological and intervention funds.
The commission said the probe, which began in March 2026, had seen several government officials, including the state’s Accountant-General, questioned by investigators. It also alleged that large sums were transferred from the accounts to several corporate entities from August 2 while the investigation was ongoing.
The Osun State Government, however, rejected the allegations, describing the account freeze as unlawful and politically motivated. Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, alleged that the action was aimed at frustrating the payment of palliatives promised to workers and accused the EFCC of attempting to justify what he called an illegal action with unsubstantiated claims.
The controversy took a new turn on Thursday when President Bola Tinubu directed the EFCC to immediately vacate the court order freezing the state’s accounts. The President said although the commission had the legal authority to investigate allegations of financial misconduct, the freezing of the accounts could disrupt governance and the delivery of essential public services. He reportedly instructed the anti-graft agency to pursue its investigation without hindering the operations of the Osun State Government.
The development comes amid heightened political tension ahead of the August 15 governorship election in Osun, where Governor Ademola Adeleke is seeking a second term on the platform of the Accord Party.
