The Osun State Government has denied allegations by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) that about ₦11 billion was diverted from the state's accounts, describing the claim as false and politically motivated.
The government also alleged that the anti-graft agency froze its statutory allocation account to frustrate the payment of palliatives to workers, insisting that no public funds had been misappropriated.
In a statement issued on Thursday by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, the government accused the EFCC of attempting to justify what it called an illegal action through unsubstantiated allegations.
According to the statement, the decision to freeze the state's account was influenced by former Governor Gboyega Oyetola rather than any evidence of financial misconduct.
"The real reason the commission froze the state account on the order of Gboyega Oyetola was to stop the payment of palliatives which the state government promised the workers some months ago," Alimi stated.
He, however, disclosed that the government had successfully paid the palliatives despite the restriction placed on the account.
"Fortunately, we have paid the palliatives to all Osun State workers," he said, noting that the cost-of-living support was part of the administration's welfare programme and not an isolated intervention.
The commissioner dismissed allegations that the government diverted ecological funds or other statutory allocations, insisting that available resources had been channelled into infrastructure, workers' welfare and other developmental projects.
"We don't loot public funds in Osun State; we deliver on public goods and services," the statement said.
According to the government, there were no idle public funds available for embezzlement as revenues had been committed to projects designed to improve the lives of residents.
"There is no fund to loot in Osun State as the little resources we have are expended on mega projects, workers' welfare and sectoral development for the benefit of the people," it added.
The government also accused the EFCC of subjecting senior officials to months of harassment under the guise of investigation.
It claimed that since March 2026, the commission had repeatedly invited and questioned top officials but had failed to establish any evidence of wrongdoing.
"The EFCC has been conducting a witch-hunting investigation since March 2026 without any indicting evidence against top officials," the statement alleged.
It further argued that where there is credible evidence of corruption, the law provides established procedures for prosecution rather than freezing government accounts.
"Assuming, without conceding, that the EFCC has any evidence of looting, there are established legal procedures for prosecuting suspects instead of a politically motivated and unlawful freezing of government accounts without recourse to the rule of law," the statement said.
The state government described the EFCC's explanation for the account restriction as an afterthought aimed at defending an action that had attracted widespread criticism.
"It is sad that a commission will lie to destroy the image of a state to cover up an illegal action that has backfired. This explanation is an afterthought and cannot withstand the test of truth or public scrutiny," it added.
The reaction followed the EFCC's defence of its decision to freeze the state's statutory allocation account as part of an investigation into the alleged diversion of about ₦11 billion from Ecology Funds, Intervention Funds and Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocations.
The anti-graft agency said investigations commenced in March 2026 and that the restriction became necessary after investigators detected what it described as suspicious transfers of funds from the account beginning August 2.
The commission maintained that its action was intended to safeguard public funds and was unrelated to the August 15 governorship election in Osun State, insisting that it remained committed to carrying out its statutory responsibilities without political bias.
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