Calls for Respect for EFCC’s Independence, Judicial Process  The Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) has condemned President Bola Tinubu’s intervention in the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) investigation involving suspicious transactions in the accounts of the Osun State Government.      In a press statement signed by its Chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, the anti-corruption civil society organisation said the President’s directive to the EFCC to lift the restriction on the accounts raises serious concerns about the operational independence of Nigeria’s anti-corruption institutions and undermines the principle that enforcement decisions should be subject to due process and judicial review. The group noted that the anti-graft commission has a statutory responsibility under Section 6 of the EFCC Act 2024 to prevent, investigate and prosecute economic and financial crimes. It said where credible intelligence or evidence suggests that public funds are at risk of diversion or misuse, the Commission should be allowed to take lawful preventive measures while investigations are ongoing. “Public money does not belong to any governor, political party or administration. It belongs to the people,” Suraju said, stressing that where an EFCC enforcement action is considered excessive or unlawful, the appropriate avenue for redress is the court, rather than presidential intervention. The civil society organisation said the restriction of accounts is intended to prevent the movement of potentially compromised funds while investigations are conducted, noting that “you cannot investigate a moving target.” HEDA cited previous EFCC similar interventions, including the restriction of Edo State Government accounts during the last governorship election following petitions and intelligence relating to alleged contract inflation and diversion of federal allocations. It said the intervention reportedly helped preserve about N12 billion pending a forensic audit. It also recalled the EFCC’s 2021 court-backed restriction of a Kogi State salary bailout account containing more than N20 billion, stressing that such measures are intended to protect public resources and not to shut down government. According to HEDA, the law empowers the EFCC to take preventive action where there are reasonable grounds to suspect that public funds may be moved or misappropriated. It cited Section 7(6) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022 and Section 34 of the EFCC Establishment Act as part of the legal framework supporting such action. The organisation warned that presidential intervention in a specific ongoing enforcement action could create the perception that anti-corruption investigations are subject to political control, particularly when the affected state is governed by an opposition party and an election is approaching. HEDA urged all political actors to refrain from turning anti-corruption institutions into instruments of electoral competition, stressing that the political affiliation of a government should not determine whether public resources are protected. “Where public money is threatened, the law should protect it. Where an anti-corruption agency exceeds its authority, the courts should correct it. But when political authorities determine which specific enforcement actions anti-corruption agencies pursue or reverse, the credibility and independence of the entire anti-corruption system are undermined,” HEDA said. The organisation called on the EFCC to continue any legitimate investigation into the Osun State accounts and prosecute anyone found culpable of diverting or misusing public funds, irrespective of political affiliation. HEDA said the controversy goes beyond Osun State, arguing that Nigeria needs anti-corruption institutions capable of protecting public resources without fear, favour or political interference. “The President should strengthen anti-corruption institutions, not determine the outcome of individual enforcement actions. There is never a wrong time to do the right thing,” Suraju said.