Osun Account Freeze: Atiku Accuses Tinubu of Weaponising State Institutions Against Opposition

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned the freezing of the Osun State Government’s statutory allocation account by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), describing the action as a “dangerous assault on democracy” that raises serious questions about the neutrality of institutions entrusted with upholding the rule of law. The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), who spoke through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, on Thursday in Abuja, insisted that there can be no justification for such an action on the eve of a critical election. He warned that restricting access to the state’s principal operational account could disrupt governance, delay salary payments, impede essential public services, and create an atmosphere of intimidation that has no place in a democratic society.

The EFCC, however, has defended its decision, stating that the account freeze was triggered by suspicious movement of funds amid an ongoing investigation into the alleged fraudulent handling of about N11 billion in Ecology Funds, Intervention Funds, and Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocations. In a statement signed by its Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, the anti-graft agency disclosed that it had been investigating the Osun State Government since March 2026 and that several officials, including the state’s Accountant-General, had been interviewed by investigators. The commission explained that the decision to place a Post-No-Debit order on the account was triggered by unusual fund movements detected from August 2, 2026. “These ongoing investigations of the state government would not have warranted any placement of Post No Debit order on its account but for the precipitate and unwarranted movement of funds from the accounts to different suspicious accounts since August 2, 2026,” the EFCC said. “The Commission noticed huge transfers of funds into different corporate entities and had to swiftly halt the trend by freezing the accounts from which such heavy funds are being moved.” The EFCC insisted its action was not politically motivated despite the timing ahead of the Osun governorship election, stressing that it could not overlook financial infractions on account of the poll. “While the Commission is fully aware of the impending governorship election in Osun State, it has a responsibility to act in defence of the sanctity of the funds of the state. It will be uncharitable for the Commission to allow an excuse of an upcoming election to fold its arms to perform its legally-assigned functions,” the statement read.

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Atiku linked the development to what he called a pattern under the Tinubu administration in which opposition-controlled states have become consistent targets of coercive federal actions, citing the earlier withholding of Osun State’s statutory local government allocations. “Coming after the prolonged denial of Osun State’s statutory local government allocations, this latest action reinforces the disturbing impression that public institutions are being weaponised to punish political opponents rather than serve the Nigerian people,” Atiku said. He maintained that the restriction would affect residents more than political officeholders because state funds are required to pay salaries and provide essential public services. “Freezing the state’s allocation account is not merely an attack on the Osun State Government; it is a direct assault on the people of Osun State, whose salaries, essential public services and daily governance stand to suffer. The anti-corruption mandate of the EFCC must never be distorted into a political weapon against opposition governments,” he stated.

The Nigerian Bar Association has faulted the EFCC over the freezing of Osun State Government’s bank account, saying the anti-graft agency lacks the constitutional power to impose a blanket restriction on a state’s finances without due legal process. NBA President, Afam Osigwe (SAN), warned that any directive restricting withdrawals from accounts belonging to a state government would effectively cripple governance and amount to an abuse of power. “No government agency or any person has the right or the power to restrict withdrawals from the account of any state because, first of all, the order has the effect of grounding the activities of a government,” Osigwe said. “If the EFCC knows that any particular account is being used for the purpose of fraud, it may be able to obtain a court order, but it cannot make a blanket order freezing the accounts of any state,” he added. “Such an order would be unconstitutional and also violate the powers of the EFCC and may actually amount to an abuse of power.” Similarly, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, questioned the legality of the alleged no-debit restriction, insisting that the EFCC must first obtain a court order before freezing any account. He noted that Nigerian courts had consistently ruled that anti-graft agencies could not freeze accounts without judicial authorisation. Isiaka Olagunju (SAN) described the freezing of the bank account as a serious violation of the 1999 Constitution and contrary to the principles of federalism. However, Professor Damilola Olawuyi (SAN) defended the use of account freezing as a recognised preventive tool in tackling economic and financial crimes, provided it is exercised within the limits of the law. He explained that temporary restrictions on accounts had become an internationally recognised mechanism for disrupting illicit financial flows, money laundering and terrorist financing. He, however, cautioned that such powers “should not be used as a cudgel to settle political scores”.

Atiku called on the EFCC to immediately reverse the freezing of the Osun State Government’s statutory allocation account. He urged all institutions involved in the conduct of the Osun governorship election to act with restraint, impartiality and fidelity to the Constitution. “The people of Osun State alone must determine the outcome of their election. No external force or institution of government should, by action or omission, cast a shadow over the credibility of that democratic choice,” he said. The former vice president also called on all opposition parties and every Nigerian committed to constitutional democracy to close ranks and resist what he described as the misuse of state institutions. “President Tinubu is leaving no one in doubt that he is determined to win elections at all costs. Democracy cannot coexist with the systematic weaponisation of state institutions against political opponents. I therefore call on all opposition parties and every Nigerian committed to constitutional democracy to close ranks and resist this dangerous drift before it is too late,” Atiku warned.

Osun Account Freeze: Atiku Accuses Tinubu of Weaponising State Institutions Against Opposition

Why I Rejected Tinubu, Buhari’s Offers to Join APC — Fayose

Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has disclosed why he rejected separate invitations from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and former President Muhammadu Buhari to join the All Progressives Congress (APC), revealing that the offers came with promises of political control of Ekiti State which he turned down. Fayose made the revelation on Tuesday while speaking with journalists, also using the opportunity to explain why he has continued to support the administration of Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, despite remaining a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The former governor said his decision not to defect to the APC was based on personal conviction rather than political calculations, and that offers from some of the party’s top leaders, including Buhari and Tinubu, could not change his position.

Fayose explained that the attempts to bring him into the APC dated back several years, with one approach coming around the period former Governor Kayode Fayemi was preparing to return as governor of Ekiti State. According to him, Tinubu personally reached out and invited him to become a member of the APC, but he declined the invitation. He added that Buhari also made a similar appeal while serving as President, but he maintained the same position and refused to join the ruling party. The efforts did not end with phone conversations, as Fayose disclosed that he was later taken to meet the then National Chairman of the APC, where another attempt was made to convince him to defect. Speaking on the issue, Fayose said: “I was governor for seven and a half years; I never had peace. The state was governed in turmoil and confusion. Tinubu called me and told me to come and join APC. I said I won’t join. This happened five years ago when Fayemi was about to be governor. The President called me that I should come. I said I’m not coming. When Buhari was there, he told me I should come. I said I’m not coming.”

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Fayose revealed that he was promised political influence in Ekiti if he agreed to join the APC. According to him, he was told the political structure of the state would be left in his hands. However, he said such assurances did not influence his decision. “He said he would take me there. I said I’m not going. They took me to the office of the then National Chairman. They talked to me. I said I’m not going to work with Buhari. I’m very clear. They said they would leave the state for me. Don’t leave it. If they had left the state for me, I didn’t know Oyebanji would come,” Fayose recounted. The former governor’s stance on remaining in the PDP has been consistent over the years. In July 2025, he told Channels Television’s Politics Today that Tinubu had offered him a position, which he declined, saying, “Have you seen me taking appointment from the APC? Asiwaju asked me, ‘What would we give you?’ I said, ‘Nothing, sir.’ At 65, I’d rather be at home, being more responsible, doing other things that I need to do.” In October 2025, Fayose reiterated that he had no desire to return to public office after decades in politics, stating, “I’ve served well. Two-time governor, I’ve done well. Tomorrow will hold itself.”

Fayose also reflected on his years in office and the physical toll his political battles took on him. He admitted that losing political control of Ekiti after leaving office was a painful experience and that he fought hard during the political contest that followed. The former governor disclosed that the spinal problem he currently lives with was a consequence of the political events surrounding the 2018 Ekiti governorship election. “I wasn’t happy that the state was taken from me. I wasn’t happy at all. I fought. I was equally injured. All the problem I had with my spine was as a result of that election,” he said. Fayose has previously revealed that the injury to his spine resulted from an attack on him during the 2018 Ekiti governorship election, when policemen surrounded the Ekiti State Government House in an attempt to prevent him from attending a governorship rally. This necessitated two major surgical operations—one on his neck in February 2022 and another on his back in July 2022.

Despite his refusal to join the APC, Fayose has continued to support Governor Oyebanji’s administration, describing it as a positive development for Ekiti State. He noted that the passage of time had changed his outlook, and that Oyebanji’s leadership has brought stability and progress to the state. “But today, God who sees tomorrow has produced you for me,” Fayose said. His support for the governor has extended to public endorsements. In June 2026, Fayose reaffirmed his support for Oyebanji ahead of the Ekiti State governorship election, stating that he would not support the PDP candidate because of the faction that produced the party’s candidate. He also described Oyebanji as a leader who has united Ekiti across political divides, contrasting the present atmosphere with periods when political rivalry among leading figures created tension and division in the state. Fayose also revealed that he had no regrets supporting President Tinubu, describing him as a kinsman with capacity. He recalled informing Tinubu of “sinister moves” within the APC during Buhari’s presidency and noted that he had always been open about his admiration for Tinubu. “When your kinsman wants to be president and he has capacity, what should you do? You should fight him? You should throw him under the bus? I have been like this,” Fayose said in a previous interview.

Fayose was recently appointed Chairman of the Board of the Rural Electrification Agency (REA) by President Tinubu. The appointment marked a shift from his earlier public position that he would not take up any role under the APC-led administration. Upon assuming the role, Fayose pledged to deploy his new office to attract electricity projects to rural communities in Ekiti State and across Nigeria. Speaking on the 2027 general elections, Fayose assessed the current state of opposition politics, declaring that Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, remains the only opposition figure with significant national traction capable of challenging the ruling APC.

Why I Rejected Tinubu, Buhari’s Offers to Join APC — Fayose

‘We’ll Meet at The Field’ – Amaechi Replies Tinubu, Vows to Match Ruling Party’s Campaign Tactics

The Vice Presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the 2027 election, Rotimi Amaechi, has responded to President Bola Tinubu’s recent remarks that anyone seeking to remove him from office must be ready to “wrestle” him until the end, declaring that the opposition is prepared to meet the President “at the field” and match whatever the ruling party brings to the electoral contest. Amaechi made the remarks during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today while reacting to the controversy surrounding comments by the Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan. The former Minister of Transportation, who contested against Tinubu for the APC presidential ticket in 2022 before defecting to the ADC, dismissed the President’s confidence, stating that the real test will be at the ballot box. “Let the president continue to tell the public that he would win the election at all cost until we get to the field. Whatever the president wants us to do at the field, we will do it. I’m not worried about what he wants to do. We will meet at the field,” Amaechi declared.

Members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria had on Tuesday last week met President Tinubu at the State House. During the meeting, Tinubu reaffirmed his determination to seek re-election in 2027, insisting that politics was a contest in which everyone had equal opportunities. “I asked for this job. I’m in it. Those who will take it from me will try. They will try. All is fair in politics, and it’s equal opportunity,” Tinubu said. He also defended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), describing it as neutral, and added: “I’m ready, but I won’t give them a red carpet. I won’t offer them the leash to tie me and rope me. No, we wrestle each other to the finishing point.”

Amaechi took issue with Tinubu’s assertion that “all is fair in politics,” questioning whether the President’s remark undermines the credibility of the electoral process. The ADC chieftain argued that Tinubu should have used the opportunity of the meeting with the Catholic bishops to reassure Nigerians of a free and fair election rather than making ambiguous statements. “Look at the president’s statement that all is fair in politics. If a thug takes a gun and shoots me where I’m voting, is it fair?” Amaechi asked. “When the president has said to you all is fair in politics, when the Catholic Church is crying about the possibility of having an election that may not be fair, all the president needs to do is to reassure the country that APC, PDP, and ADC will slug it out on an even field, that it will be a free and fair election, let the best team wins.”

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In a further show of political combativeness, Amaechi warned that his camp would be prepared to match any attacks from the Tinubu administration during the campaign season. “By the time we start the campaign, we will abuse anybody who is ready to abuse anybody. We will descend as low as they want. The president said all is fair in politics; we will descend to that level if that is what they want,” the former Rivers State governor declared. However, Amaechi added that he is currently focused on mourning his late mother and suspended his period of mourning to address what he considered disrespectful comments directed at the Catholic Church by officials of the Presidency. “I came here simply to say, please ask the President to stop insulting the Catholic Church, to stop insulting Christians. They should respect God and respect the Christian faith. They should stop insulting Christians,” Amaechi said.

The ADC vice presidential candidate also came to the defence of Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, who recently came under fire from presidential aides after revealing details of the bishops’ closed-door meeting with Tinubu. Amaechi accused the Presidency of showing disrespect for the Catholic Church and the Christian faith by deploying what he called “attack dogs” to intimidate Cardinal Onaiyekan. “What the president and his men are doing is insulting my faith. They are insulting the Catholic Church,” Amaechi said. He further argued that the Tinubu administration would never have reacted the same way if the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, had made similar remarks. “If the Sultan had confronted the President, would they have insulted him? We’ve been insulted because we are Christians,” Amaechi asserted. Amaechi maintained that Cardinal Onaiyekan was not aligned with any political party but was genuinely concerned about poverty, corruption, and the welfare of Nigerians. “Cardinal Onaiyekan himself supports nobody. The only thing that pains him is the level of indiscretion and poverty in the country and corruption. He worries about that,” Amaechi said.

Following the meeting with the President, Cardinal Onaiyekan had said Tinubu appeared determined to win the 2027 presidential election “by all means” and that the President disagreed with the bishops’ assessment of the country’s economic situation, insisting that conditions were improving despite the hardship being experienced by many Nigerians. According to the Cardinal, Tinubu’s response suggested that those around him were not giving him an accurate picture of the situation in the country. The Cardinal also said the bishops had no intention of engaging in a public exchange with government spokespersons, stating: “We have no response for them. We have spoken, and the only response we are waiting for is whether it is affecting the way they are governing.” He explained that the audience with President Tinubu was initiated after months of waiting for approval and was not intended as an evangelistic mission, but rather an opportunity to present the bishops’ concerns about governance and welfare of Nigerians. “We didn’t go there just as Catholic bishops pushing the Catholic agenda. No. We went there as people who are with the spiritual mandate to speak to anybody in the name of God,” Onaiyekan said.

Amaechi, who served as Minister of Transportation under former President Muhammadu Buhari, was one of the aspirants who contested the APC presidential primary election in 2022, losing the ticket to Tinubu. He later defected to the ADC and was selected as the running mate to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who will fly the ADC’s presidential ticket in the 2027 election. The ADC described the Atiku-Amaechi partnership as a “unity and rescue ticket” aimed at offering Nigerians an alternative platform ahead of the next general election. According to the ADC, Amaechi’s emergence followed broad consultations within the party and reflected his strong performance as runner-up in the party’s presidential primaries, as well as his extensive track record of service as Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, two-term Governor of Rivers State, and Minister of Transportation. The ADC ticket, which brings together two political heavyweights who were once rivals, is positioning itself as a formidable challenger to President Tinubu and the ruling APC in the upcoming election. Amaechi’s latest comments signal that the opposition is gearing up for a fiercely contested political battle.

‘We’ll Meet at The Field’ – Amaechi Replies Tinubu, Vows to Match Ruling Party’s Campaign Tactics