The Osun State Government has dismissed allegations by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that about ₦11 billion in public funds was being diverted, insisting that no money was looted and describing the anti-graft agency’s actions as politically motivated.
The state’s response comes amid the controversy triggered by the EFCC’s decision to freeze Osun Government bank accounts over an alleged ₦11 billion fraud investigation, a move that President Bola Tinubu has since reversed by directing the commission to immediately unfreeze the accounts.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, the state government alleged that the account freeze was orchestrated to frustrate the payment of palliatives promised to workers and was part of a broader campaign against Governor Ademola Adeleke’s administration.
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According to the commissioner, the state had already paid the palliatives after negotiations with labour unions to cushion the impact of the country’s economic hardship.
He maintained that the allegation of looting was false, stressing that available state resources had been committed to infrastructure projects, workers’ welfare and other development programmes.
“There is no fund to loot in Osun State as the little resources we have are expended on mega projects, workers’ welfare and sectoral developments for the benefit of the masses,” the statement said.
The commissioner further claimed that the EFCC had been investigating senior officials of the state government since March 2026 without uncovering any evidence of wrongdoing.
He accused the commission of harassing government officials regularly and argued that, if the EFCC had credible evidence of financial misconduct, it should follow due legal process rather than freezing government accounts.
The state’s rebuttal followed the EFCC’s insistence that the account freeze was necessary to prevent the alleged diversion of public funds. The commission had maintained that it detected suspicious transfers from government accounts and that its action was unrelated to the August 15 governorship election in the state.
However, following public outcry and concerns over the potential disruption of governance, President Tinubu intervened, directing the EFCC to lift the restriction on the state’s accounts while allowing its investigation to continue through lawful channels.
