Osun Gubernatorial Race: Adeleke’s Campaign Urges INEC and Security Forces to Tackle Ongoing Electoral Irregularities

The Imole Campaign Council, TICC, of Governor Ademola Adeleke has called on the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, security agencies and other election stakeholders to address recurring electoral irregularities before the August 15, 2026 governorship election in Osun State.

The council which made the appeal during a press conference in Osogbo on Monday, said the concerns arose from reports by accredited election observers, findings of the council’s election surveillance team, publicly available evidence and accounts from voters during recent elections across Nigeria.

Director-General of TICC, Senator Lere Oyewumi, said the objective of raising the issues was to strengthen the credibility of the electoral process and enhance public confidence in the conduct of the forthcoming governorship election.

According to him, “Elections derive their legitimacy from public confidence. Once citizens begin to lose faith in the integrity of the electoral process, democracy itself becomes endangered. It is against this background that we consider it a patriotic duty to raise these concerns now.”

Among the concerns highlighted by the council was the alleged distribution of Permanent Voter Cards, PVCs, to suspected mercenary voters during recent off-cycle elections in several states.

Oyewumi said the reports had generated public concern and should not be repeated in Osun

“The people of Osun will not tolerate any attempt to import mercenary voters or manipulate the electoral process through unlawful distribution of PVCs,” he stated.

The campaign council also expressed concern over allegations that some voters in the 2026 Ekiti State governorship election and the Federal Capital Territory Area Council elections were issued ballot papers that had already been thumb-printed before they cast their votes.

While stating that the council was not drawing definitive conclusions from the allegations, Oyewumi urged INEC to ensure that all ballot papers and result sheets for the Osun election remained secure and protected from unauthorised access or duplication.

The council further raised concerns over reported technical challenges involving the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, during previous elections, particularly difficulties experienced by elderly voters during accreditation.

Oyewumi said, “Technology should make elections easier, not become an obstacle to the exercise of constitutional rights. We therefore urge INEC to thoroughly test, calibrate and deploy fully functional BVAS machines across Osun State.”

The campaign organisation also referred to reports that some individuals allegedly voted without presenting Permanent Voter Cards during the Ekiti governorship election, describing such incidents as inconsistent with the provisions of the Electoral Act.

According to Oyewumi, “allowing voting without PVCs could create opportunities for impersonation, multiple voting and participation by unauthorised voters, thereby affecting confidence in the electoral process.

“We urge INEC to deploy additional BVAS machines and election officials to polling units with high voter populations.”

Oyewumi said findings by its Election Surveillance and Data Analysis Unit indicated that more than 2,500 polling units in Osun have over 500 registered voters, while over 1,200 polling units have more than 1,000 registered voters.

He added that adequate deployment of accreditation equipment and personnel would help reduce delays, minimise queues and ensure eligible voters were able to cast their ballots within the stipulated time.

The campaign council called on INEC and security agencies to investigate allegations that some leaders of the All Progressives Congress, APC, had made claims about preloading BVAS machines and illegally printing additional result sheets ahead of the governorship election.

It said such allegations should be thoroughly examined to safeguard the credibility of the electoral process and maintained that the concerns were intended to improve, rather than undermine, the electoral system.

He urged INEC to implement necessary safeguards before the August 15 governorship election, while security agencies, political parties and other stakeholders were encouraged to ensure a peaceful, transparent and credible electoral process.