With just days to the Osun governorship election, President Tinubu has told the EFCC to go back to court and lift the freeze on the state's accounts — not because he disagrees with the anti-graft war, but because the timing looks terrible.

So, in a bit of a twist, President Bola Tinubu has ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to immediately vacate that court order freezing the accounts of the Osun State Government.

The President made the call on Thursday in a statement from the State House, and honestly, his concern was all about optics and public trust. Osun is just days away from its governorship election, and the last thing anyone wants is for people to think federal might is being used to meddle.

According to cbinews.tv, Tinubu said he got wind that the EFCC had secured the freeze order on August 5, 2026, as part of its probe into alleged financial infractions.

And look, he was quite clear — he is not knocking the EFCC for doing its job.

“It has come to my notice that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission 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,” the President said.

The EFCC, for its part, had earlier defended the move, saying it was well within its powers and that it can even freeze accounts for 72 hours without a court order before getting judicial backing.

But Tinubu pointed out a political reality — whatever a federal agency does, Nigerians will pin it on him, whether he knew about it or not.

“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 added.

He reminded everyone that since he assumed office, he has let anti-corruption agencies work independently, without any interference.

“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,” he said.

In fact, he said he has deliberately stayed out of the EFCC’s operational business because he believes strong institutions are key to democracy and the rule of law.

Still, this one needed his intervention.

“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,” Tinubu stated.

His bottom line? With the Osun guber poll so close, nothing should give the impression that the EFCC or any other federal agency is being used to interfere.

“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.

So, in the overriding public interest, he has directed the commission to go back to court, vacate the order, and discontinue whatever action it has instituted against the Osun State Government.

As cbinews.tv reports, this is all playing out against a backdrop of war of words — the Osun Government has rubbished claims of N11bn misappropriation and accused the EFCC of trying to justify its action, while the anti-graft agency insists its probe is not politically motivated.

All eyes are now on Osun as the election draws nearer.

Credit: Original report via cbinews.tv

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