President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to lift the freeze placed on the bank accounts of the Osun State Government following a telephone conversation with Governor Ademola Adeleke on Thursday.
The development comes amid widespread public criticism that trailed the anti-graft agency’s decision to freeze the state’s accounts over an ongoing investigation into what the EFCC described as suspicious transactions it recently detected in the accounts.
The President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed the directive in a post shared on his verified Facebook page on Thursday.
According to Onanuga, President Tinubu informed Adeleke during their telephone conversation that he had directed the EFCC to withdraw the court order used to freeze the state’s accounts, paving the way for the accounts to be unfrozen.
“President Tinubu, in a phone conversation with Governor Ademola Adeleke on Thursday, informed him about his directive to the EFCC to lift the court order on the Osun State Government account,” Onanuga wrote.
The presidential intervention marks a dramatic turn in the controversy that has dominated political discourse since the EFCC froze the accounts.
The anti-graft agency had defended its action, insisting that it acted within the ambit of the law after obtaining an interim court order to preserve the funds pending investigations into alleged suspicious financial transactions involving the Osun State Government’s accounts.
However, the action sparked strong reactions from political stakeholders, civil society organisations and members of the public, with critics describing the move as politically motivated, particularly as the state prepares for its forthcoming governorship election.
The controversy further intensified on social media, where hundreds of Nigerians reacted to Onanuga’s announcement.
While some welcomed the President’s intervention as a step toward easing political tension, others questioned the legal implications of a presidential directive on a matter the EFCC had maintained was backed by a valid court order.
Several commenters described the development as “damage control,” while others argued that the President’s intervention reflected responsiveness to public concerns. Some also questioned whether the anti-graft agency genuinely obtained a valid court order before freezing the accounts, despite the EFCC’s consistent insistence that it followed due legal process.
The latest directive is expected to ease tensions between the Federal Government and the Osun State Government, although it remains unclear when the legal processes required to vacate the freeze order will be concluded.
As of the time of filing this report, the EFCC had yet to issue an official statement on the President’s directive.
