Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke
Ten days to the August 15 governorship election, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has frozen an Osun State Government account domiciled with First Bank in Osogbo the state capital.
Governor Ademola Adeleke is seeking reelection for a second term on the banner of Accord Party, while Mr Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress, is his main challenger in the election.
Reportedly, the frozen account which is used for the payment of workers’ salaries, was placed on “Post No Debit” status by the anti-graft agency.
The action came on Wednesday barely after Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, alleged that the EFCC was planning to freeze the state government’s accounts and those of some top government officials.
He had described the alleged plan as “the height of lawlessness”, warning that freezing the accounts could cripple government operations ahead of the election.
Adeleke, in a statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, maintained that there was no legal basis for the action, arguing that the EFCC lacked the statutory powers to freeze an account belonging to a state government.
He said, “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.”
However, a source close to Adeleke, who requested anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly, confirmed that the account had been frozen.
With the affected account placed on “Post No Debit” status, this restricts withdrawals and other debit transactions from the account.
