EFCC froze Osun accounts to block workers' palliatives, says govt

The Osun State Government has hit back at the EFCC over the freezing of its accounts, calling the anti-graft agency's explanation an attempt to justify an illegal act. In a statement on Thursday in Osogbo, the Commissioner for Information, Kolapo Alimi, said the freezing was ordered by former Governor and Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, to stop the payment of palliatives promised to civil servants.

Alimi said, "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. This account freezing marks the climax of Oyetola's historic anti-workers' obsession." He insisted there is no fund to loot in Osun, adding that the little resources are spent on mega projects and workers' welfare. The government has now gone to court to challenge the freezing, arguing that if the EFCC had evidence, it should prosecute rather than punish the entire state.

So the EFCC says it froze N11 billion over alleged looting, but the state says it was a political move to hurt workers. Which side do you believe, and what does this say about how state finances are being handled in Nigeria?