Osun Guber: Violence Fears Grow As Accord, APC Talk Tough

…Two Killed, Speaker Attacked In Osun East

…Adeleke Rattled As Accord Faction Endorses APC Candidate

… Tinubu Congratulates APC Candidate On ‘Expected Victory’

…Let Voters, Not Federal Might, Decide Osun Election – Obi

The ruling Accord party and the main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) on Thursday talked tough ahead of Saturday’s governorship election in Osun State, despite growing fears that the poll could descend into violence.

The Accord party, at the conclusion of its campaign, issued a series of statements addressing specific allegations of violence and rigging, even as the APC counters with its own accusations of desperation against the ruling party.

The Imole Campaign Council, the Accord party campaign organisation for the reelection of Governor Ademola Adeleke warned that the Senate President must not publicly endorse Senator Francis Fadahunsi at an APC event “despite the serious controversy surrounding his recent statements concerning violence against political opponents,” adding that such a gesture “would send a dangerous message” and could “damage the reputation of the Senate and paint Nigeria in a terrible light before the international community.”

In a statement for the campaign council signed by Pelumi Olajengbesi, it stressed that the Senate President’s office “is not merely a partisan position,” describing it as “one of the highest constitutional offices in Nigeria” that demands “responsibility, accountability and a commitment to the protection of every Nigerian, including the people of Osun State.”

The council in a petition to the National Human Rights Commission called for an independent inquiry into killings and attacks in Esa Oke, insisting that “every life is sacred” and that “no Nigerian should lose his life because of politics.”

It further stated that the continuing violence had “gone beyond partisan disagreement” and had “become a serious human rights and public safety crisis requiring urgent and independent intervention.”

The petition detailed the killing of Ajayi Aderogba, popularly known as “Rogba,” an Accord supporter shot dead in Esa Oke on June 23.

According to the council, Aderogba’s widow, Tolulope, gave an account alleging her husband had been encouraged to meet with Hon. Wole Oke but declined, maintaining “he would not abandon the Accord Party,” before he was attacked and killed.

It urged the Commission to obtain her statement, interview all persons named, and examine police investigation files, stressing that the allegations “should not be left to political accusations and counter accusations.”

Even as campaigns ended in Thursday fears of violence have continued after the Osun East Senatorial District, represented by Fadahunsi, continued to be rocked by unrest following his widely publicised order for Accord party members to be killed.

He gave the order during a rally at the palace of the Owa Obokun of Ijesaland in Ilesa on Tuesday but has denied it, insisting he only told supporters to “kill Accord with votes.”

Police have since questioned him, and he was seen on Wednesday, in videos posted online, insisting there was nothing to the allegation.

Osun East covers ten local government areas across the Ife and Ijesa cultural zones and accounts for the second-highest voting strength in the state after Osun Central, with 823,410 registered voters, representing 35 per cent of the state’s total voting population of 2,339,233.

Any candidate with a strong showing in both Osun East and Osun Central is expected to win Saturday’s poll, raising the political stakes around Fadahunsi’s district.

Two people have also been confirmed dead, including Esa Oke residents Ajayi Aderogba and Dele Ayegbo, while the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Adewale Egbedun, was attacked on Wednesday in Okuku.

Egbedun confirmed the attack in a Facebook post, noting that two suspects arrested had been handed to security agencies.

Olajengbesi described the attacks in Esa Oke as carried out by APC thugs “reportedly on a rampage… attacking Accord members and invading their homes and properties,” insisting every killing “must be thoroughly investigated” and those responsible “brought to justice.”

He also referenced statements attributed to Hon. Wole Oke, alleging he had “reportedly stated publicly that anyone who was not a member of his party should face the consequences of whatever happened to them,” describing such remarks as carrying “dangerous implications.”

He also alleged that four more Accord members were killed on Thursday in Ilesa, within Fadahunsi’s senatorial district, describing the development as no longer politics but a situation where “Osun State has witnessed too many killings today alone.”

He added, “No political ambition is worth the blood of innocent citizens.”

Calling on the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, to act, Olajengbesi insisted that “the violence and insane killings must stop,” stressing that “every life matters, regardless of political affiliation.”

These attacks continue despite the deployment of over 25,000 security personnel for the election.

Adeleke Rattled As Accord Faction Endorses APC Candidate

Meanwhile, the APC projected confidence at a mega rally in Osogbo on Thursday, where Senate President Godswill Akpabio, representing President Bola Tinubu, rallied support for APC candidate Bola Oyebamiji alongside governors and party chieftains, including pioneer APC National Chairman Chief Bisi Akande, APC National Chairman Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, Speaker of the House of Representatives Dr Abbas Tajudeen, and Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, among several others.

Akpabio assured residents of adequate security, saying, “The President is saying that he has put enough security measures in place for the good people of Osun State to vote peacefully come Saturday, August 15, 2026. Nobody is going to be harassed.”

He urged voters to “link Osun State with the centre,” noting that “over 30 governors are already in the APC” and asking, “Are you ready to join? Are you ready to vote?”

In a further remark, Akpabio described Fadahunsi as “one of the most important senators that we have in Nigeria,” and dismissed concerns over online backlash, saying, “Social media is not the same thing as polling units… even if you are being attacked on social media, I think you should exercise restraint.”

He also thanked other political parties for endorsing Oyebamiji, citing former governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola’s decision to lead a PDP group in support of the APC candidate.

In a blow to the Accord campaign, a factional national chairman of the party, Prof. Chris Imumolen, announced at the rally that his faction’s National Working Committee had withdrawn support for Governor Ademola Adeleke and endorsed Oyebamiji instead.

“We have stepped down our support for Ademola Adeleke, and today we declare our support for Ambo,” he said, directing Accord members to vote APC on Saturday. “Come Saturday, all Accord Party members in Osun State should go to the polling units to vote for Ambo,” he added.

However, Imumolen’s faction is not recognised by INEC, which acknowledges the National Working Committee led by Maxwell Mgbudem. Olajengbesi dismissed the endorsement as “a show of shame” staged by “a fake entity and an impersonator,” insisting Mgbudem “is solidly behind Governor Adeleke and will never endorse Oyebamiji.”

He added that the APC’s move showed “the party is unpopular and had to recruit a fake entity to promote false and misleading narratives.”

Tinubu Congratulates APC Candidate On ‘Expected Victory’

Responding to the factional endorsement, Tinubu, also represented by Akpabio, congratulated Oyebamiji and expressed confidence in an APC victory.

“What has happened here is enough to say congratulations to all of you… Osun is going to have a very peaceful election. We are not violent,” he said, while criticising Adeleke’s performance in office and urging Oyebamiji to prioritise infrastructure if elected, stressing that governance should not be reduced to “social media paparazzi.”

In a separate development, the Court of Appeal upheld the nomination of Adebayo Olugbenga Adedamola as the PDP’s governorship candidate and directed INEC to include the party’s logo on the ballot, ruling that the party’s primaries had been duly conducted and monitored by the commission.

However, the PDP’s Interim National Working Committee, through National Publicity Secretary Ini Ememobong, said the ruling came too late for meaningful campaigning, describing the outcome as “akin to a denial” of opportunity, and accused INEC of being “not a neutral umpire, but more of an interested party.”

The party consequently threw its support behind Adeleke instead, urging members to “go out on Saturday to vote, defend their votes and ensure that their votes count,” and warning against what it called the APC’s “shameful do or die disposition.”

The ADC, through its National Secretary Rauf Aregbesola, a former governor of the state, said the party was “on the streets and in the markets” campaigning for its candidate, pledging a “people-friendly government” that puts “the interests and welfare of the people first,” adding that “the wealth of our nation should benefit everyone, not just a privileged few.”

Let Voters, Not Federal Might, Decide Osun Election – Obi

Amid the tension, Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (ADC), Peter Obi, said the outcome of the election must be determined by voters and not by federal might.

“Osun belongs to its people,” Obi said, calling on INEC, security agencies and all stakeholders to act with neutrality and restraint. He added that their loyalty “must be to Nigeria and the Constitution, not to any political party or individual,” and that their duty is “to protect every voter equally.”

He insisted that “the people of Osun must be allowed to vote freely, safely and without intimidation,” warning politicians against turning “neighbours, friends and communities against each other,” and stressing that “Nigeria is bigger than any candidate, and Osun is greater than any political party.”

He further charged INEC to safeguard the credibility of the process “from the preparatory stages to accreditation, voting, collation, and declaration,” adding that every irregularity “must be addressed seriously and every legitimate vote must count.”

Obi appealed to the international community and election observers to monitor the poll closely, insisting that “democracy is not only about who wins but about whether the people are truly allowed to choose,” and that “power can change hands through ballots rather than bloodshed.”