EFCC Defends Account Freeze for Osun State Government

The single sharpest fact in one or two punchy sentences.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has defended its decision to freeze an Osun State Government account, claiming it has the power to do so without a court order. According to the EFCC, the move was taken to preserve the account after it noticed suspicious activities over a week.

The commission's Director of Public Affairs, Wilson Uwujaren, said the action was taken under the powers granted to the EFCC by the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2022, which allows it to place a temporary restriction on an account. He said the commission could not afford to look away, arguing that inaction would have exposed it to public criticism.

Section 34 of the EFCC Act and Section 7, Subsection 6 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2022 give us that authority to take that step, Uwujaren said. The commission has been investigating the Osun State Government since March 2026 over the alleged fraudulent handling of about N11bn in Ecology Funds, Intervention Funds, and Federation Account Allocation Committee allocations.

The Osun State Government has disputed the EFCC's claim, arguing that the commission lacks the power to freeze the account without a court order. The state's Attorney General, Oluwole Jimi-Bada (SAN), had directed the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, to justify the freeze, which he described as illegal.

On the legality of the action, Uwujaren said the commission's power to place a temporary restriction on an account was rooted in statute. He added that such a restriction order could subsist for up to 72 hours before the commission would need to approach a court.

The restriction order does not mean that all the accounts of Osun State have been frozen. No. It is just a targeted restriction on one account of the Osun State Government, Uwujaren said. The Osun State Government retained access to other accounts and would not be hindered in the discharge of its functions, he added.

The payment of salaries and other expenditures by the state government happens just once in a month. What we have done is not a blanket freezing of the account, Uwujaren emphasized. Once we are satisfied that activities on that account are no longer suspicious, it will be lifted, he said.

The Osun State Government had earlier released a statement saying the EFCC's action was illegal and unacceptable, and that it would challenge the action at the Federal High Court in Osogbo. The state's Governor, Ademola Adeleke, had also demanded that the EFCC Chairman justify the freeze.

The EFCC's decision to freeze the Osun State Government account has sparked a heated debate over the commission's powers and the need for checks and balances in the system. The move has raised questions about the EFCC's ability to wield its powers without accountability.

Osun: We can freeze accounts for 72 hours without court order — EFCC, 2026-08-06.

The EFCC's power to freeze accounts without a court order has raised questions about accountability and the need for checks and balances in the system.

Osun State's Attorney General, Oluwole Jimi-Bada (SAN), had directed the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, to justify the freeze, which he described as illegal. The Osun State Government had earlier released a statement saying the EFCC's action was illegal and unacceptable, and that it would challenge the action at the Federal High Court in Osogbo.