Ten days before Osun State's governorship election, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) froze the state government's statutory allocation account, triggering a political firestorm that eventually drew in President Bola Tinubu himself.
In a letter dated August 5, 2026, and signed by Assistant Commander Adenike Babalola on behalf of the Director of Investigation, the EFCC instructed First Bank to place a "Post No Debit" restriction on the account, referenced as "Osun State Government Statutory Allocation," account number 2017170947. The order cited Section 38(1) and (2) of the EFCC Establishment Act, 2004, and Section 24 of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and referenced an earlier EFCC letter dated April 15, 2026. The account is reportedly used, among other things, to pay state salaries.
The EFCC said it has been investigating the Osun State government since March 2026 over the alleged fraudulent handling of Ecology Funds, Intervention Funds, and allocations from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), totaling roughly ₦11 billion. The commission said several officials, including the state's Accountant-General, had already been interviewed. It stated that the investigation alone would not have justified freezing the account, but that from August 2, 2026, it detected what it called "precipitate and unwarranted" movements of funds out of the account into several corporate entities it considered suspicious, prompting it to act to halt the transfers. "The Commission cannot watch idly while a State's account is pillaged," the EFCC said in a statement.
Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke rejected the freeze, calling it an abuse of due process. At a press conference in Osogbo, he denied that state funds were being deployed for campaign purposes, noted that no court order had been obtained before the bank was instructed to act, and directed the state's legal team to challenge the freeze in court.
On August 6, 2026, just a day after the freeze, President Bola Tinubu personally issued a statement on the matter. He said he was not questioning the EFCC's statutory powers, independence, or mandate, and reiterated that law enforcement agencies must operate free of political interference. He nonetheless directed that the restriction be lifted, reportedly describing the timing ten days before the August 15 governorship election as "deeply embarrassing."
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) criticized the EFCC's action, arguing the commission lacks the constitutional authority to impose a blanket freeze on an entire state government's account, even while conceding it can lawfully target specific accounts linked to a fraud investigation via court order. Commentators have since framed the episode as a broader test of Nigerian federalism, given the timing relative to the election and the absence of prior judicial authorization for the freeze.
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