President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately vacate the court order freezing the Osun State Government’s accounts, citing concerns that the action could undermine public confidence ahead of the state’s governorship election.

In a statement issued on Thursday from the State House, the President said he was “deeply embarrassed” by the timing of the EFCC’s move, stressing that although the anti-graft agency acted pursuant to a court order, the public would inevitably associate the action with his administration.

Tinubu reiterated his long-standing policy of allowing anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies to operate independently without political interference, noting that he had consistently refrained from directing the operational activities of the EFCC and other investigative bodies.

According to the President, strong democratic institutions must be allowed to perform their statutory responsibilities professionally, without fear, favour or political influence.

He, however, said the timing of the EFCC’s action was inappropriate, especially as Osun State is only days away from its governorship election.

“Nothing ought to be done to give the impression that the EFCC or any other federal agency is being used to interfere with the electoral process,” Tinubu stated.

The President said that while he was yet to receive full details of the investigation that prompted the EFCC to obtain the court order, the overriding public interest required urgent intervention to safeguard the integrity, credibility and fairness of the electoral process.

Consequently, Tinubu directed the EFCC to return to court immediately to vacate the order freezing the state’s accounts and discontinue the action against the Osun State Government.

The directive comes amid heightened political attention over the EFCC’s decision to secure a court order freezing Osun State’s accounts as part of an ongoing investigation. The development had sparked widespread reactions from political stakeholders and legal practitioners, with concerns over its potential impact on the forthcoming governorship election.

The Nigerian Army  has confirmed the arrest of two soldiers, Privates Onasanya Ifeoluwa and Ukpai Onyinyechi, for working as bouncers at the wedding of social media personalities Habeeb Hamzat, popularly known as Peller, and Jarvis in Lekki over the weekend.

Both soldiers were identified as personnel of the Nigerian Army’s Medical Services and Hospital at Obalende, Lagos.

Spokesman for the 81 Division, Lt.-Col Musa Yahaya, confirmed to The Nation that the soldiers were arrested on Tuesday and are in custody.

They were allegedly involved in an unauthorised deployment after footage of the wedding, which went viral across social media platforms, showed the soldiers in military uniform providing security and escorting guests.

One video allegedly showed a soldier escorting TikTok personality Ivanna through the crowded venue.

The videos sparked public debate, with many Nigerians questioning whether serving military personnel were authorised to perform security duties at a private celebrity event.

The videos particularly raised concerns because they flouted earlier directives by President Bola Tinubu, which withdrew police and military escorts from persons not entitled to them by law to beef up security across the country.

The Nigerian Army has consistently maintained that its personnel are prohibited from undertaking unauthorised private security duties or participating in deployments without official approval.

According to sources, preliminary investigations are underway to determine the extent of their involvement and identify any other personnel connected with the incident.

The wedding of Peller and Jarvis attracted entertainers, influencers and other guests, with videos from the ceremony dominating social media over the weekend.

The Managing Director, Divine Dopacy Nigeria Limited, Gbenga Collins, has informed the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee that he paid N400 million to the purported Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, Adeniyi Adeyemi, after allegedly being promised a contract to renovate and furnish what was presented as the official residence of the DG.

This revelation comes amid the ongoing investigation into the alleged establishment and operations of the agency.

Narrating the ordeal before the committee on Tuesday, Collins noted that he believed the PFIPC was a genuine Federal Government institution because Adeyemi operated from an office in the Federal Secretariat, Abuja, moved with security personnel and official vehicles bearing government number plates, and received visitors in what appeared to be an authentic government office.

Collins, a graduate of Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, said he first met Adeyemi, whom he described as a fellow indigene of Ogbomoso, during a programme in their hometown in December 2024.

According to him, Adeyemi later invited him to Abuja in early 2025 to discuss a business opportunity.

“When I arrived at the airport, he sent an official car to come and pick me up from the airport to his office at the Federal Secretariat, Abuja.

“When I got to his office, I met him there. He is a well-known man in Ogbomoso. I met a lot of people, very big dignitaries in his office, and I met a group of security officers guarding the office,” he said.

Collins said Adeyemi introduced himself as the Director-General of both the Presidential Economic Advisory Council and the PFIPC.

He told lawmakers that it was his first visit to Abuja and that the official setting gave him no reason to question Adeyemi’s claims.

“I saw police officers with him. That was my first time coming to Abuja because I’m not familiar with Abuja very well. He sent his official car to pick me up from the airport. It had a Federal Government registration number attached to the Lexus SUV,” he said.

Collins said Adeyemi later informed him that he had been allocated an official residence as the DG and wanted his (Collins’) company to handle its renovation and furnishing.

According to him, Adeyemi personally took him to inspect the property.

“He told me that he wanted to do refurbishment and renovation of the official house assigned to him as the DG of that agency and asked whether I would be able to handle the contract.

“He took me to the house to show me the property because I slept in Abuja. We went there the following day with his staff. We went with more than four, five or six vehicles with security. They opened the house and took us round, showing me what they wanted to do,” Collins added.

He said discussions continued until April 2025 when Adeyemi allegedly handed him a contract award letter, scope of work and an agreement between the purported council and his company.

Collins told the committee that he was informed he needed to pay N400m to demonstrate his company’s financial capacity and facilitate mobilisation for the contract.

“He gave me the contract award letter, the scope of work and the agreement with my company to execute the refurbishment project.

“I had to pay N400m for the facilitation of that project to show my strength that I would be able to handle the project. At the same time, he said it would fast-track the mobilisation for the contract,” he said.

The businessman disclosed that he raised the money from business associates who trusted him because he had personally visited Adeyemi’s office.

According to him, N380m was paid in four instalments between May and June 2025 into a Guaranty Trust Bank account belonging to World Entrepreneurs Limited, while the balance of N20m was paid on July 29, 2025, into an Access Bank account belonging to Sunshine Confectionery and Catering Services.

“When I was paying the money, I kept telling him that I collected the money from my colleagues who were doing business with me.

“I was the one who told them I had gone to this man’s office, so I believed it was going to be a great opportunity for us. That was why people started giving me the money,” Collins said.

He said Adeyemi repeatedly assured him that mobilisation for the project would commence in August 2025, but the promise never materialised.

“When I finished the payment, he said they were going to do the mobilisation by August,” he said.

Collins said subsequent explanations centred on security concerns before fresh assurances were given that payment would be made in November.

“I continued calling him. He kept managing me, telling me they were handling security issues and that they would pay in November,” he added.

The witness said he became suspicious after repeated attempts to reach Adeyemi failed and later consulted a lawyer in Abuja.

“My lawyer was the first person who told me that I had been scammed,” he told the committee.

He disclosed that his lawyer petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on November 13, 2025, and that he adopted the petition six days later.

“The petition was written on the 13th, and I was invited to adopt it on the 19th,” he said.

He added that investigators later informed him that Adeyemi repeatedly failed to honour invitations from the EFCC, allegedly citing ill health through his lawyer.

“Since then, the EFCC has been trying to invite him. I think he has been sending his lawyer. According to the Investigating Police Officer handling the case, his lawyer kept saying he would appear.

“Since then, I have not heard anything further, but they are on top of the matter. The EFCC will be in the best position to handle the rest,” Collins said.

Appealing to lawmakers, the businessman said the incident had ruined his business and forced him to dispose of personal assets.

“I just want to beg the Chairman and the honourable members to help me talk to all the agencies involved because I have been frustrated, especially by those people who gave me the money. I have started selling my property. My business is not going well again,” he lamented.

He maintained that he acted in good faith because everything surrounding Adeyemi suggested he was dealing with a genuine government official.

“I did all this based on trust. When I went to his office, I met a lot of big dignitaries there, people waiting to see him and people he was discussing contracts with. I also did it because he is from my hometown,” Collins said.

During the hearing, committee chairman Yusuf Gagdi asked Collins whether the N400m amounted to a bribe paid to secure the contract.

The witness rejected the suggestion, insisting that the payment was presented to him as a prerequisite for facilitating and mobilising the contract.

Lawmakers also asked whether he complied with the provisions of the Public Procurement Act before accepting the purported contract.

Collins admitted that he did not follow any formal procurement process.

“What I just have to say is to beg the committee, or to implore the committee, to please, in all their capacity, whatever they can use to assist me with the police that are investigating him because I was invited to the Cybercrime office. He said the same thing, that he did not deny collecting the N400m,” he told lawmakers.

He also confirmed that the money was never converted to United States dollars before it was transferred.

Responding to questions over Adeyemi’s absence from the public hearing, the committee chairman, Gagdi, disclosed that lawmakers would question Adeyemi at an undisclosed date and location to avoid interfering with ongoing investigations by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission and the police.