Tension has continued to mount in Osun State ahead of Saturday’s governorship election following the killing of an All Progressives Congress (APC) supporter in Esa-Oke and the shooting of another party member.
The deceased, identified as Ayegbo Oluwadele, was reportedly shot around the Oluwole Oka family compound in Esa-Oke, Obokun Local Government Area. Another APC supporter, Taiwo Oluwadele, was also shot in the incident and was said to be in critical condition.
Ayegbo was the nephew of Busayo Oluwole Oke, the Director-General of the APC Campaign Council and a member of the House of Representatives.
The Osun State Police Public Relations Officer, Abiodun Ojelabi, confirmed the death but did not provide details about the circumstances of the shooting.
The APC Campaign Council also confirmed the incident. Its spokesperson, Oluremi Omowaye, alleged that supporters of rival political parties had been responsible for a series of attacks on APC members across the state.
Omowaye said the party had lost several members to election-related violence and alleged that other APC supporters had recently been attacked in different parts of Osun.
He also claimed that five people were shot in Ilesa in a separate incident, with four reportedly dying and another receiving treatment at a teaching hospital. According to him, the victims were allegedly targeted because they were wearing APC caps.
The campaign council further identified Idowu Laide, Ebuke Emmanuel and Adebiyi Ebeneezer as APC members who were allegedly attacked in Atakumasa East Local Government Area.
Another APC chieftain, Kehinde Ayantunji, accused a senior member of the Osun State House of Assembly of involvement in attacks on APC members in Odo-Otin Local Government Area. He also alleged that the party’s House of Representatives candidate, Francis Eniade, was attacked in front of the Okuku Divisional Police Station.
The allegations, however, were disputed by the state government. Osun State Commissioner for Information, Kolapo Alimi, denied claims that members of the Accord Party were responsible for attacks on APC supporters.
NBA Raises Alarm Over Election Violence
The growing incidents of violence have also attracted concern from the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).
NBA President Afam Osigwe urged security agencies deployed for the election to remain neutral and perform their duties without favouring any political party.
Speaking in Osogbo, Osigwe said security personnel must protect voters, INEC officials and other participants in the electoral process. He warned that violence could discourage voters from participating and undermine confidence in the election.
According to data cited by the NBA president, about 73 election-related violent incidents were reported between May and July, with approximately 29 deaths recorded during the period.
Osigwe described the situation as disturbing and said recent developments suggested that election-related violence in the state was not merely spontaneous.
He identified Osogbo and Ilesa as major flash points, saying more than half of the reported incidents occurred in the two areas.
He appealed to political actors to stop actions and statements capable of escalating tensions and urged security agencies to ensure that voters were not intimidated or prevented from exercising their rights.
YIAGA Africa Reports More Than 35 Deaths
YIAGA Africa also expressed concern over the level of violence ahead of the poll.
The organisation’s Executive Director, Samson Itodo, said more than 35 deaths had been recorded in incidents linked to the election campaign.
Itodo described the situation as alarming, particularly because the Osun governorship election is the final off-cycle governorship election before the 2027 general elections.
He said the poll would also provide an opportunity to assess several innovations introduced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), including the use of downloadable Permanent Voter Cards.
According to Itodo, the violence recorded during the campaign had exceeded the level normally associated with Osun elections.
He also raised concerns about the neutrality of security agencies, although he said the Inspector-General of Police had assured YIAGA Africa that officers deployed for the election would act professionally and remain neutral.
Itodo urged political parties and their supporters to exercise restraint and reject violence, intimidation and threats based on political affiliation.
Dispute Over Ebonyi REC’s Presence in Osun
Meanwhile, the Imole Campaign Council of Governor Ademola Adeleke raised questions over the reported presence of Ebonyi State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Pauline Ugoyenka, in Osun.
In a statement issued by its Media and Publicity Committee chairman, Bamidele Salam, the council alleged that Ugoyenka was not among the RECs officially deployed to support the Osun election.
Salam questioned the reason for her presence in the state and called on INEC to explain her role, authority and activities.
The campaign council also demanded that INEC publish the complete list of officials deployed for the election.
INEC Deploys 15 RECs
INEC, however, said it had deployed 15 Resident Electoral Commissioners to support the conduct of the election.
The commission’s National Commissioner and Chairman of its Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, explained that each supporting REC would assist with the supervision of two local government areas.
Haruna said the deployment was part of INEC’s normal arrangements for off-cycle elections and by-elections, describing the use of supporting commissioners as standard practice.
He said the commission was ready for the election, with only the reprinting of ballot papers outstanding at the time.
The Osun governorship election is scheduled for Saturday, August 15, across the state’s 30 local government areas. INEC says 15 political parties are participating, while 2,339,233 registered voters are expected to take part across 3,763 polling units.
The commission has also increased the number of BVAS devices from the 4,427 used as a reference point during the 2022 election to 5,130 for Saturday’s poll. An additional 1,328 devices have been provided as backups.
Over 1.9 Million PVCs Collected
INEC said 1,906,390 Permanent Voter Cards had been collected ahead of the election, representing 81.50 per cent of the state’s 2,339,233 registered voters.
The commission said 426,842 PVCs, representing 18.50 per cent, remained uncollected and had been deposited with the Central Bank of Nigeria in accordance with established procedures.
INEC also disclosed that some voters whose cards were lost, damaged or defaced had applied for replacements. Of those applicants, 6,101 had printed downloadable copies of their PVCs.
The commission said it had published a polling-unit-by-polling-unit breakdown of collected PVCs on its official platform.
With the election only days away, political parties, civil society organisations and election observers have intensified calls for restraint. The major concern now is whether security agencies, political actors and voters can prevent further violence and ensure that the August 15 poll is conducted peacefully, transparently and credibly.