Governor Ademola Adeleke of Osun State. Credit: Osun State Government
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has directed that no money be withdrawn from the Osun State Government’s statutory allocation account as part of an ongoing investigation.
A letter dated August 5, 2026, and signed by the Assistant Commander of the EFCC, Adenike Babalola, for the Director of Investigation, instructed the bank to place a post-no-debit restriction on the account pending the conclusion of the probe.
The letter, referenced 3000/EFCC/ABJ/HQ/PFS/TA/OSUN/VOL.17/666, was addressed to the Managing Director of First Bank, with attention to the Chief Compliance Officer.
It identified the affected account as “Osun State Government Statutory Allocation” with account number 2017170947.
The commission stated that the directive followed an earlier correspondence dated April 15, 2026.
It added that the request was made pursuant to Section 38(1) and (2) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act, 2004, and Section 24 of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
“Refer to our letter CR:3000/EFCC/ABJ/HQ/PFS/TA/OSUN/VOL.17/165 dated 15th April, 2026 on the above subject.
“In furtherance to the above, you are kindly requested to place a Post-No-Debit on the account. This request is made pursuant to Section 38 (1) & (2) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (Establishment) Act, 2004 and Section 24 of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
“Thank you for your usual cooperation, please,” the letter read.
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission officials. Photo: EFCC
Sources within the anti-graft agency told The PUNCH that the investigation into the Osun State Government did not begin recently, insisting that the probe had been ongoing for more than a year.
One of the sources said several senior government officials had previously honoured invitations from the commission and made written statements in connection with the investigation.
“We have been investigating the government for over a year. In fact, some top officials of the government had been invited; they came and wrote statements. So it is not because of the forthcoming election,” the source said.
Efforts to obtain the reaction of the EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, were unsuccessful as calls to his telephone line were not answered.
He had also yet to respond to a text message seeking comment as of the time of filing this report.
The development comes hours after Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke alleged that the EFCC was planning to freeze the accounts of the state government and some top officials ahead of the state’s governorship election.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, the governor described the reported move as an attempt to cripple the activities of his administration before the poll.
Adeleke argued that the anti-graft agency lacked the legal authority to freeze the accounts of a state government.
“There is no legal basis or justification for any push to freeze the state government accounts. The anti-graft agency has no legal powers to freeze the account of a state government,” the governor said.
The latest development is expected to heighten political tension in Osun State as preparations continue for the forthcoming governorship election.
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