The Senior Political Assistant to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, Demola Olarenwaju, has accused President Bola Tinubu of being responsible for the political and institutional tensions confronting Osun State.
Naijaonpoint reports that Olarenwaju made the allegation in a post on his 𝕏 account on Thursday amid the controversy surrounding the freezing of an Osun State Government bank account by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
He also criticised Governor Ademola Adeleke, claiming that the Osun governor lacked the courage to publicly identify Tinubu as the person behind the state’s challenges.
“Tinubu is the man behind the masquerade troubling Osun State, and if Governor Adeleke is not bold enough to name him, he should avoid any public genuflection or kowtowing to him until elections are done and the will of the people of Osun prevails against APC next Saturday,” Olarenwaju wrote.
The controversy followed the EFCC’s decision to place a Post-No-Debit restriction on an account belonging to the Osun State Government.
The anti-graft agency maintained that the action was not directed at any political figure or party.
It said the restriction was imposed to prevent the alleged movement or diversion of public funds connected to an ongoing investigation.
The Osun State Government and several opposition politicians, however, questioned the timing of the action, coming shortly before the governorship election.
Olarenwaju alleged that the development showed that the anti-graft commission operated at the President’s direction.
“Public proof that EFCC continues to act at the discretion and direction of Bola Tinubu, and may in future be used at will against opposition leaders,” he claimed.
He did not provide documentary evidence showing that Tinubu personally directed the EFCC to freeze the account.
The Presidency and the anti-graft agency have repeatedly maintained that federal institutions should perform their statutory duties independently.
The Atiku aide further linked the controversy to Tinubu’s approach to political contests.
“This is consistent with Tinubu’s ‘all is fair in politics’ assertion, but inconsistent with democratic norms,” Olarenwaju stated.
