Thursday, August 6, 2026 - President Tinubu has ordered the EFCC to vacate the court order freezing an account of the Osun State government.
In a statement released this afternoon, the President said
he feels deeply embarrassed by the action, not because the commission exercised
its mandate but because of the timing the order was issued and effected.
The commission on Wednesday, August 5, froze an account of
the state government ten days to the state governorship election.
This move has been interpreted by many as one done to
frustrate the incumbent governor who is not a member of their party.
The President, in the statement released, asked the EFCC to
immediately vacate the order.
Read the statement below
‘’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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Long live
the Federal Republic of Nigeria.''
0 Comments