President Bola Tinubu’s directive to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to vacate the court order freezing the Osun State Government’s bank accounts has sparked reactions on social media, with some Nigerians questioning the independence of the anti-graft agency.
The controversy followed the EFCC’s decision to freeze the accounts of the Osun State Government amid an ongoing investigation into alleged financial misconduct.
The commission had linked the action to an investigation involving the alleged diversion of N11 billion and suspicious movement of funds belonging to the state government.
The Osun State Government, however, rejected the allegations and described the account restriction as unlawful and politically motivated.
The state government maintained that the action was unrelated to financial misconduct and accused the EFCC of attempting to interfere in the state’s affairs days before the August 15 governorship election.
The EFCC, on its part, defended the restriction, maintaining that it was acting within its statutory mandate as part of an ongoing investigation.
The development also attracted criticism from opposition figures, including the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and Allied Peoples Movement (APM) presidential candidate, Seyi Makinde, who condemned the timing of the account freeze and raised concerns about its implications for democracy and the credibility of the Osun governorship election.
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) also questioned the legal basis for freezing a state government’s statutory allocation account.
Amid the controversy, Tinubu on Thursday directed the EFCC to return to court and vacate the order freezing the state government’s accounts.
In a personally signed statement, the President said he was “deeply embarrassed” not by the commission’s exercise of its mandate but by the timing of the action.
Tinubu said he had yet to be fully briefed on the facts that informed the EFCC’s decision to obtain the order but considered the timing “inauspicious”, given that the governorship election was only days away.
He said nothing should be done to create the impression that the EFCC or any other federal agency was being used to interfere with the election.
The President consequently 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.”
Presidential aide Bayo Onanuga later disclosed on X that Tinubu had spoken with Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke on Thursday and informed him of the directive.
He said, “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.”
The disclosure triggered a fresh debate on social media, with some users accusing the President of interfering in the operations of an agency expected to function independently.
Reacting to Onanuga’s post, Atiku’s Aide, Phrank Shaibu, wrote on X, “So @officialEFCC is now taking directives from the President on who to prosecute and who to spare? Thank you for confirming what Nigerians have long suspected: the anti-corruption agency is operated by remote control. They froze Osun’s account, the public cried out, and one presidential phone call reportedly changed everything. Congratulations, Nigeria. We have replaced the rule of law with the rule of one man.”
Also criticising the development, an X user, @Skood wrote, “President Tinubu interfering in EFCC’s Osun investigation by ordering the freeze lifted is pure impunity. If the agency found corruption going on, he should stay clear and not interfere whatsoever. This action shows he could also give a phone call to EFCC to freeze an account of his choosing, proving selective justice and total disregard for institutional independence and rule of law in Nigeria today.”
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Another user, Hugochuku, questioned why the disclosure of the President’s conversation with Adeleke was made public. He said, “This info shouldn’t have been made public. I know he wants to take credit for everything and portray himself as a peace-loving man, but this is a blunder,” the user wrote.
@Milito also criticised the President’s intervention, saying, “Our democracy is gradually going down. EFCC is supposed to be an independent institution but in this administration the president is ordering them around.”
Another X user, @Adimchinobi, wrote: “Tinubu is Inec. Tinubu is Efcc. Tinubu is Dss. Tinubu is Police. Tinubu is military. Tinubu is judiciary. Tinubu is National Assembly. At the end of the day na Tinubu be salt and pepper for Nigeria.”
Meanwhile, @ChukwudozieOrji, criticised both the EFCC’s initial action and the President’s response. He said, “The EFCC went out of bounds by freezing Osun State’s account. The President is going out of bounds by ordering the EFCC to unfreeze a sub-national government’s account that it illegally froze. We live in a lawless society,” the user wrote.
@ChrisAspirewealth questioned the extent of presidential authority over the commission, saying, “Since when does an executive directive order an independent agency like the EFCC to lift court-sanctioned restrictions? The setup and the “rescue” are both part of the same political damage control.”
Another user, @MISTER AY, questioned the concentration of power in the Presidency. He wrote, “Nigeria’s president is arguably the most powerful democratic president in the world. Too much power vested on one man. There is no true independent agency in the country. Every agency and parastatal is at the mercy of the president. We need to build strong institutions,” the user wrote.
Titilope Adako is a talented and intrepid journalist, dedicated to shedding light on the untold stories of Osun State and Nigeria. Through incisive reporting, she tackles a broad spectrum of topics, from politics and social justice to culture and entertainment, with a commitment to accuracy, empathy, and inspiring positive change.
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