President Bola Tinubu has directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to return to court without delay and seek the vacation of the order that froze the accounts of the Osun State Government. In a statement issued from the State House on Thursday, the president noted that the commission obtained a court order on August 5, 2026, which placed restrictions on the state accounts.

He made clear that he does not oppose the commission in the exercise of its lawful mandate. Instead, he expressed deep concern over the timing of the action. Every step taken by a federal institution, he observed, is often attributed to the president, even when he has had no prior knowledge of it.

Osun State stands only a few days away from its gubernatorial election. The president therefore stressed that no action should create the impression that the commission or any other federal agency is being deployed to interfere with the electoral process.

He described the timing as inauspicious and said he felt compelled to intervene in the overriding public interest of protecting confidence in the democratic process, along with its integrity, credibility, and fairness. Accordingly, he has instructed the commission to proceed at once to the court, vacate the existing order, and discontinue whatever action it has instituted against the Osun State Government in this matter.

The directive comes against the background of an ongoing investigation by the commission into alleged irregularities involving public funds. The president has also spoken by telephone with Governor Ademola Adeleke to inform him of the instruction given to the commission.