Election Tension Mounts in Osun as APC, Accord Allege 18 Members Killed

By Our Correspondent

Barely six days to the August 15 Osun governorship election, palpable fear has gripped residents of the state following fresh incidents of violence, with the two major opposition parties, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Accord Party, alleging that they have lost a combined 18 members in the build-up to the poll.

The development has heightened concerns over the safety of voters, political parties and election officials as the state prepares for the governorship election. The deployment of 15,000 policemen has also generated divergent reactions among political parties and civil society organisations.
The build-up to the August 15 election has been characterised by a series of violent incidents across the state, including attacks on party supporters and campaign convoys, shootings and alleged assassination attempts.
In May, an Accord Party member, Kolade Eluyera, was killed in Irewole Local Government Area. The party attributed the incident to alleged APC supporters, a claim rejected by the opposition party.
The violence escalated on June 3 when the Accord chairman in Osogbo Local Government Area, Asimiyu Ajibola, was shot by gunmen and left receiving treatment in hospital.
Another death was reported in Esa-Oke, where an Accord supporter, Ajayi Rogba, was killed during the period of heightened political activities. Accord supporters linked the killing to political violence, while APC members in the area denied involvement and cautioned against politicising the incident.
Earlier, campaign activities in Ede, Osogbo and other parts of the state had been disrupted by clashes, shootings and attacks on campaign convoys, further reinforcing concerns that political disagreements were taking a violent dimension.
The scale of the violence has since become a major concern ahead of the election. Kimpact Development Initiative, for instance, said 44 election-related violent incidents resulting in 13 fatalities were recorded in Osun between October 2025 and June 2026.
However, the political parties, in separate discussions with Sunday Vanguard, presented higher figures concerning the deaths of their members. The APC campaign council alleged that 10 of its members had been killed during the electioneering period, while the Accord Party said eight of its members had also lost their lives.
The parties have continued to trade accusations over responsibility for the violence, with each accusing the other of attacks on its members.
Although the combined figure of 18 deaths claimed by the two parties has not been independently established as a single death toll, the allegations have heightened fears of possible reprisal attacks and further violence before, during and after the election.
The security situation has therefore become a major issue in the final days of the campaign, with stakeholders divided over whether the deployment of 15,000 policemen would help prevent violence or amount to militarisation of the electoral process.
APC: 10 members killed
The APC campaign council said the number of personnel deployed was less important than the professionalism, equipment and capacity of security agencies to ensure a free, fair and credible election.
A member of the APC campaign council, Mr Kehinde Ayantunji, who spoke on behalf of the chairman, said the deployment of 15,000 personnel could be meaningless if they lacked the proper equipment and training required to ensure a peaceful poll.
Ayantunji said the party had lost no fewer than 10 members since the beginning of the campaign in Ilesa, Iwo, Osogbo, Ijebu-Jesa and other communities.
He said: “It is unfortunate that human life is involved and there is no election that is worth the life of any human being.”
On the deployment of police officers, he said the party was not interested in the number of personnel but in the conduct of a free and fair election.
He stressed the need for professional conduct by the police, adequate capacity to protect voters and their votes, as well as sufficient security to enable supporters of all parties to come out and vote for candidates of their choice.
According to him, the police must deploy adequate personnel, equipment, strategy and logistics to ensure that every vote counts in all the 3,761 polling units across Osun State.
Accord demands more security
The Accord Party, on its part, said the number of policemen deployed might not be adequate considering the level of violence witnessed in some towns across the state.
The party called for more security personnel to ensure the safety of voters and votes.
Its Media Director, Mr Oladele Bamiji, said the Accord Party had lost about eight people to violence since the commencement of the campaign.
He listed Oriade, Ijebu-Jesha, Ilobu, Ikire and Osogbo among areas where killings had occurred.
Bamiji described the situation as disheartening and frightening, stressing that no political contest should lead to the loss of human lives.
He also questioned the numerical arrangement of the security deployment, considering the number of polling units in the state.
According to him, Osun has close to 4,000 polling units, making the deployment of four or five officers per polling unit inadequate.
He, however, acknowledged that the police would not be the only security agency deployed for the election and expressed hope that other security operatives would complement their efforts to ensure a peaceful poll.
CSOs kick against ‘militarisation’
Meanwhile, a coalition of civil society organisations in the state, The Osun Masterminds, expressed concern that the deployment of 15,000 policemen amounted to militarisation of the election.
The spokesperson for the group, Mr Ayo Ologunde, said elections should not be treated as warfare and warned that a heavy security presence could create fear among voters.
He argued that the deployment could also create security gaps in neighbouring states, as criminals might take advantage of the reduced number of policemen in those areas on election day.
Ologunde also expressed concern that checkpoints could restrict freedom of movement and discourage voters from participating in the election.
He questioned the resources being spent on election security allowances, arguing that such funds could instead be channelled into infrastructure and other developmental needs.
Stakeholders back deployment
However, the Convener of Dialogue 365, Mr Saka Waheed, supported the deployment, saying it was necessary to prevent further violence and ensure a peaceful election.
Waheed said stakeholders had demanded adequate protection and should therefore not describe the deployment as militarisation.
He argued that the killings recorded in the months leading to the election showed that insufficient security could result in further violence on election day.
He said even more personnel could be deployed if necessary, as long as the primary objective remained the protection of the people.
A former chairman of the House of Assembly Committee on Information, Mr Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, also supported the deployment, saying it could have been informed by intelligence available to the Federal Government.
Oyintiloye said heavy security deployment was routine during election periods and that Osun State was familiar with such arrangements.
He, however, acknowledged concerns over rising incidents of extrajudicial killings and urged security agencies to act decisively while the government intensified public sensitisation to encourage voter turnout without fear.
With the election only days away, attention has shifted to how security agencies will manage the volatile political environment, particularly in areas considered flashpoints.
The competing claims by the APC and Accord over the deaths of their members have also raised concerns about possible retaliation and the potential escalation of political violence before, during and after the election.
Stakeholders have consequently called for restraint among political parties and their supporters, while urging security agencies to ensure that the heavy deployment is used to protect voters and maintain peace rather than intimidate the electorate.