ABUJA, Nigeria — Nigeria‘s President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to immediately vacate a court order freezing the accounts of the Osun State Government on Thursday, August 6, 2026.
Golden Info reports that Tinubu issued a directive instructing the anti-corruption agency to return to court and discontinue its action against Osun State. The directive follows a court order obtained by the EFCC on August 5, 2026, which restricted the state’s financial access.
“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,” Tinubu said in a statement released by the Statehouse.
The president stated he lacked prior knowledge of the agency’s legal maneuver. “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,” he said.
Tinubu noted that the state is approaching a gubernatorial 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.
The president maintained that he has previously refrained from interfering with investigative agencies to preserve independent law enforcement. “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.