By AfrikTimes | Osogbo
The Osun State chapter of the African Action Congress has issued a sharply worded statement accusing the state’s police command of taking sides in the run-up to next month’s governorship election and alleging a broader scheme to have the vote postponed.
The party’s publicity secretary, Akinlade Semiu Babatunde, said in the statement dated July 21 that security in Osun has visibly worsened despite a recent visit by Inspector-General of Police Tunji Disu. “A visit the party said was meant to project reassurance but has not translated into safety on the ground,” he said.
Old Garage clash cited as latest flashpoint
Babatunde pointed to Monday’s disturbance at Osogbo’s Old Garage, where he alleged armed men, described in the statement as loyal to the ruling APC, attempted to forcibly take control of the garage, terrorizing traders and drivers in the process. The AAC characterized the incident as part of a wider pattern it says includes political killings, kidnappings, and intimidation of opposition figures across the state, adding that even where arrests follow such incidents, those it considers the real masterminds have gone unpunished.
Police accused of taking sides
The party’s most serious allegation concerns the conduct of the Osun State Police Command itself, which Babatunde accused of abandoning neutrality and siding with the APC. He referenced a video circulating online that he said showed officers in police uniform associating with alleged APC-loyal thugs, an image he described as evidence of officers enabling rather than checking criminal activity.
On the strength of these allegations, the AAC is demanding that the IGP redeploy Osun’s Commissioner of Police, arguing that public confidence in his leadership has collapsed.
Party alleges a plan to delay the election
Beyond the security complaints, the statement laid out what the AAC described as a stage-by-stage scheme it believes is underway, which includes using a compromised police command to stir instability, then citing that instability to argue the state is unfit for elections, and ultimately securing a six-month postponement of the governorship poll in favour of an unelected administrator answering to Abuja. The party did not present independent evidence for this alleged plan beyond its own reading of recent events but insisted the plot would fail regardless.
Babatunde argued that if the APC anticipates defeat in Osun, it should contest the election on its own political record rather than pursue what he termed an unconstitutional route to power.
Call for the vote to proceed as scheduled
The AAC closed its statement by urging civil society groups, labour unions, youth organizations, and the international community to keep a close watch on Osun ahead of August 15, framing the state’s election as a test case for Nigerian democracy more broadly. The party maintained that the poll must go ahead as scheduled and that residents must be allowed to vote without interference.
Osun’s governorship election remains set for Saturday, August 15, with fourteen parties fielding candidates.
