Nigeria: Court Stops EFCC's Planned Probe of Oyo Finances, Faults 'Fishing Expedition'

What the report says

AllAfrica, carrying a Premium Times report, says the Federal High Court in Ibadan has barred the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission from continuing a planned inquiry into Oyo State Government finances. The judgement, delivered Wednesday by Justice Nkeonye Maha in suit FHC/IB/CS/61/2025, found that the EFCC’s demand for broad financial records was not tied to clearly identified allegations.

The case followed a 2 June 2025 EFCC letter to the state Accountant General seeking extensive records, including contract documents and payments to contractors from 2021 onward. Oyo State, through the governor, attorney general and accountant general, argued that the request was sweeping, burdensome and unfair because the commission did not name particular contractors, transactions or offences under investigation. The report cites a statement from Governor Seyi Makinde’s media adviser, Sulaimon Olarewaju, saying the state had asked the EFCC to narrow its request before filing suit.

Justice Maha ruled that Section 38 of the EFCC Act permits information requests only in relation to investigations of offences under the law, and does not support blanket scrutiny of state accounts. The court set aside the EFCC letter and held that future requests must be reasonable and connected to specific claims of wrongdoing. The EFCC had argued that the Act empowered it to obtain the requested documents as part of its mandate.

The ruling is significant because, as Premium Times notes, it sits uneasily with prior judicial caution against blocking anti-corruption agencies from carrying out statutory functions. It also comes after a 2024 Supreme Court decision affirming federal anti-corruption bodies’ powers to investigate and prosecute crimes involving state and federal actors.