President Bola Tinubu has charged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies to ensure a peaceful, transparent and credible governorship election in Osun State.
Tinubu, in a statement issued on Friday by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, urged the electoral commission to uphold the integrity of the process and ensure that the election is conducted in an orderly, free and fair manner.
The President said the August 15 governorship election provides INEC with an opportunity to demonstrate its readiness for the 2027 general elections.
“As the people of Osun State head to the polling units to elect who will govern them in the next four years, I call on the Independent National Electoral Commission to ensure orderly conduct of the election.
“The election must be transparent, free and fair. I urge INEC to ensure the integrity of the process,” Tinubu said.
He added: “INEC must use this last off-cycle election as a test case to demonstrate to Nigerians their full preparedness for the 2027 polls.”
Tinubu also directed the Inspector-General of Police and other heads of security agencies deployed for the election to provide adequate protection for voters and electoral officials across the state.
According to him, security personnel must prevent individuals or groups from disrupting the electoral process.
“I have charged the Inspector-General of Police and other heads of security outfits taking part in the election to provide maximum security at polling units. No room should be allowed for troublemakers to disrupt the process,” the President said.
He further called for the protection of voters and electoral officials against intimidation, stressing that residents must be able to exercise their civic responsibilities without fear.
“Electoral officials and voters must be protected so they can perform their civic duties without fear or intimidation,” he said.
The President urged eligible voters to come out and cast their ballots for candidates of their choice, while warning against acts capable of undermining the peaceful conduct of the election.
“Voters should feel confident to go out in their numbers to vote for the candidate of their choice as all measures necessary to ensure a peaceful, free and fair election have been put in place,” Tinubu said.
He stressed that the ultimate test of the election would be whether its outcome genuinely reflects the preference of the electorate.
“Our elections must be credible, and the outcome of the Osun Governorship election must reflect the will of the people,” he declared.
The Osun governorship election is scheduled to hold on Saturday, August 15, 2026, with 15 candidates slugging out for the governorship seat.
Major contenders include the incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji; and African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate Najeem Salaam.
INEC had disclosed that over 1.9 million permanent voter cards (PVCs) were collected for the Osun governorship election.
A statement released on Thursday by INEC’s National Commissioner, Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna, said the number was derived from the total of 2,339,233 total registered voters in the State.
