Fayemi Secures Court Order Halting EFCC Investigation Amid High-Stakes Legal Battle

The Court of Appeal sitting in Ado-Ekiti has restrained the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from inviting or investigating former Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, as well as serving and former state officials over the management of the state’s public finances.

The appellate court also halted the anti-graft agency’s investigation into contracts, expenditure and other financial transactions linked to the Ekiti Airport project executed during Fayemi’s administration.

In a unanimous judgment delivered on May 8, 2026, Justice Peter Affen held that the EFCC could not act in a manner inconsistent with an existing Federal High Court judgment relating to the state’s public accounts. The court consequently issued a perpetual injunction restraining the commission from continuing the disputed investigation.

According to the Certified True Copy of the judgment, the appellate court ruled that the EFCC cannot rely on provisions of its enabling law to override a valid constitutional interpretation already made by a court of competent jurisdiction.

The case stemmed from the commission’s investigation into allegations of money laundering, contract inflation, abuse of office and diversion of public funds connected to the Ekiti Airport project.

While an earlier Federal High Court judgment had barred the EFCC from compelling Fayemi to publicly display placards bearing criminal allegations before any conviction, it declined to permanently stop the commission from investigating the former governor and other officials.

Dissatisfied with that aspect of the ruling, Fayemi and the Ekiti State Attorney-General challenged the decision at the Court of Appeal through their counsel, Chief R.O. Balogun (SAN).

Allowing the appeal, Justice Affen ruled that the EFCC ought to have challenged the earlier Federal High Court decision through the appellate process instead of taking actions inconsistent with it.

The court consequently restrained the commission from inviting or further inviting Fayemi, the Ekiti State Attorney-General, former Commissioners, the Accountant-General and other state officials over contracts, revenue, expenditure and other financial activities of the state government.

The appellate court further held that the constitutional responsibility for auditing and scrutinising the state’s public accounts rests with the Ekiti State Auditor-General and the House of Assembly, not the EFCC.

The dispute dates back to 2022 when the anti-graft agency commenced an investigation into alleged financial irregularities surrounding the Ekiti Airport project. The probe intensified after the commission received a petition dated May 10, 2023, from the Ekiti Patriotic Consultative Forum alleging abuse of office, contract inflation and diversion of public funds.

Despite objections from the Ekiti State Attorney-General, who relied on an earlier Federal High Court judgment to challenge the investigation, the EFCC reportedly continued requesting documents relating to state finances, including appropriations, federal allocations, tax refunds and internally generated revenue, prompting fresh legal action.

The Ekiti Airport project, undertaken by the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, was inaugurated in October 2022 but later attracted public scrutiny over its cost, funding and procurement process.

Commercial flight operations eventually commenced in December 2025 under Governor Biodun Oyebanji, who disclosed that the project cost about ₦49.7 billion, with Fayemi’s administration spending roughly ₦14 billion while the current administration provided over ₦34 billion to complete the project.

In a separate but related matter, the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled in December 2025 that the EFCC violated the fundamental rights of the former Director-General of the Ekiti State Bureau of Public Procurement, O’Seun Odewale, by unlawfully detaining him for three days during the airport investigation.

Fayemi was also questioned by the EFCC in June 2023 in connection with a separate alleged ₦4 billion money laundering investigation.