The Nigeria Police Force has deployed more than 15,000 personnel, including 30 Commissioners of Police, for the Osun State governorship election scheduled for Saturday, August 15, 2026, as security agencies intensify preparations for the poll.
Key Highlights
30 Commissioners of Police deployed across Osun State for the election.
More than 15,000 police operatives to provide election security.
Police helicopters and drones deployed for aerial surveillance.
Army to cordon off border roads from midnight on Saturday.
INEC says 1.9 million PVCs have been collected in Osun.
14 political parties signed a peace accord ahead of the election.
Police say 34 illegal firearms have been recovered in the state.
The Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Anietie Iniedu, disclosed this while addressing journalists in Osogbo on Friday on the police preparations for the Osun governorship election.
Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Alliance and African Democratic Congress candidate Najeem Salaam are among the leading contenders for the governorship seat.
Iniedu said the police began deploying personnel three weeks before the election, adding that a Deputy Inspector-General of Police would coordinate security operations during the poll.
According to him, more than 15,000 police operatives would be deployed across the state, while a police helicopter and drone unit had arrived in Osogbo to conduct aerial surveillance before, during and after the election.
He said two units of the Police Mobile Force, each comprising more than 60 personnel, had also been deployed to the Independent National Electoral Commission headquarters in Osogbo.
Each of the 30 Local Government Areas in the state will have a Police Mobile Force unit, with each unit comprising about 60 personnel.
“We have deployed armed mobile policemen to every local government area in the state. So, we have 30 units across 30 local government areas,” Iniedu said.
He added that each local government area would have a Commissioner of Police, a Deputy Commissioner of Police, a Mobile Police Commander and a PMF commander with the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police.
“As of today (Thursday), our helicopters and drone units have arrived in Osogbo, and they will be conducting area surveillance from now, during and immediately after the elections,” he said.
Osun State To Be Locked Down
The Force PRO said the Army would cordon off border roads leading into Osun State from midnight on Saturday as part of measures to prevent the movement of individuals who could disrupt the election.
“We will be locking down the state. We will not be allowing any vehicular movement apart from those on essential duty, security duties and those going to cast their franchise,” he said.
He advised parents to warn their children against electoral offences, including intimidation, stalking, vote-buying and ballot-box snatching.
Iniedu added that a mobile court would be available to prosecute suspects arrested for electoral offences.
He also disclosed that security operatives had recovered about 34 illegal firearms in Osun State, with investigations ongoing.
Vote-Buying Allegations
Meanwhile, some residents of Osogbo have alleged that political canvassers distributed cash to voters ahead of the election.
Traders at Oja Ojude Oga, Ota Efun, Igbona and Alekuwodo markets told journalists that they received N10,000 each from canvassers seeking their support.
One trader alleged that canvassers had previously distributed N15,000 and returned with another N10,000, promising additional payments on Election Day.
Another resident, identified as Silifat, said residents of Alekuwodo also received money from representatives of political parties.
However, the spokesperson for the Osun APC, Kola Olabisi, denied that the party was involved in vote-buying.
Efforts to contact the spokesperson for the Accord Party, Oladele Bamiji, for his reaction were unsuccessful as of the time of filing the report.
Hoodlums Arrested
Some suspected hoodlums were also reportedly arrested in Ifewara, Osun State, by Nigerian Navy operatives.
The suspects were said to have been travelling in a vehicle branded in APC colours. A video circulating online showed about 12 people being questioned by Navy personnel.
Olabisi said he had not seen the video and would comment after reviewing it.
INEC Urges Parties To Honour Peace Accord
The Independent National Electoral Commission has urged political parties and their candidates to honour the peace accord signed ahead of the election and commit themselves to a peaceful poll.
INEC Chief Press Secretary and Media Adviser to the Chairman, Adedayo Oketola, made the appeal while speaking on Morning Express on ADBN TV.
Fourteen political parties contesting the election signed the peace accord organised by the National Peace Committee and INEC.
Oketola said the agreement represented a public commitment by political actors to maintain peace, obey the law and avoid violence before, during and after the election.
He acknowledged that tensions had increased in the state but said INEC remained confident that the election would take place in a secure environment.
The commission has completed the deployment of non-sensitive materials to local government areas, while sensitive materials are being moved from the Central Bank of Nigeria vaults to local government offices.
Oketola said officials would subsequently move the materials to Registration Area Centres ahead of Election Day.
He also said INEC expected officials to be present at all 3,700 polling units by 8am on Election Day, with voting expected to begin by 8.30am.
INEC Upgrades BVAS, Deploys Backup Devices
Oketola said INEC had tested its electoral technology through a mock accreditation exercise and was satisfied with the outcome.
He disclosed that the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System had been configured and upgraded, while backup devices had increased from about 600 to more than 1,300.
INEC will also operate situational rooms in Osogbo and Abuja to monitor developments across polling units and communicate with presiding officers where necessary.
Oketola said more than 2.3 million registered voters were eligible to participate in the election and urged voters to remain calm and report irregularities through appropriate channels.
He identified vote-buying as a criminal offence under the Electoral Act and warned both buyers and sellers against attempting to influence the election through cash or digital transactions.
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1.9 Million PVCs Collected
INEC disclosed that 1,906,390 Permanent Voter Cards had been collected by registered voters in Osun State ahead of the election.
The figure represents 81.50 per cent of the 2,339,233 registered voters in the state, leaving 426,842 PVCs, representing 18.50 per cent, uncollected.
INEC said the uncollected PVCs had been deposited with the Central Bank of Nigeria in line with its established procedure.
The commission also disclosed that 6,101 people who applied to replace damaged, defaced or lost PVCs had printed downloadable copies of their cards.
INEC said it had published a polling-unit-by-polling-unit breakdown of collected PVCs on its website.
