Issued: 9:30am, Friday, 14th August 2026
The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room (Situation Room) has convened in Osogbo, Osun State to observe the Osun State Governorship Election 2026. With more than 70 Civil Society Organizations represented in the Situation Room, Situation Room will work with its partners and networks to observe the election and receive reports from across the 30 Local Government Areas and 332 wards in the State. This will inform its observations and analysis of the Governorship election.
Just as previous Osun State Governorship Elections, the Situation Room notes that the Osun State Governorship election will be the last major election before the general elections in 2027. This election will therefore be critical and a litmus test for INEC preparations as well as ensure that confidence being built around the electoral process. This also includes the conduct of the security agencies and other stakeholders particularly the political class.
The Situation Room is deeply concerned about the heightened tensed political environment that has preceded this Governorship election scheduled for 15th August 2026. The Situation Room has followed with concern the reports of politically motivated violence, clashes involving political actors and supporters, attacks and intimidation, tensions surrounding motor parks and transport unions, allegations of political thuggery, deaths and arrests of political actors, and the increasingly hostile rhetoric among political parties and their supporters.
These developments are particularly troubling given the identification of 385 election flashpoints across Osun State by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as well as the identification of 13 Local Government Areas out of the 30 LGAs as critical and high violence-risk areas by Situation Room partners, Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI) and CLEEN Foundation.
Preliminary observations by the Situation Room indicates that although voters across the State are still motivated to come out and cast their votes, there is a lot of tension and fear being peddled around the election owing to utterances of the political parties, their supporters and information from media outlets and the social media. Last night there were widely circulated reports of a killing in Illesa-East LGA.
1. INEC and Election Administration: Situation Room expects an improved administration and management of the 2026 Osun State Governorship Election especially as all eyes are on the conduct of the elections. INEC sensitive materials arrived in Osogbo at about 8:30pm on Thursday, 13th August due to the reprinting of the ballot papers to include the candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). While this has potential to cause delays to early arrival of materials at the polling units on Election Day if not managed carefully, there is still time to ensure that materials that left last night to the various Local Government Areas are ready for despatch to the Super RACs tonight being the eve of Election Day. Situation Room will follow the process and movement of materials and escalate any issues noticed. The previous attack on an INEC Permanent Voter Card (PVC) distribution centre in Odo-Otin Local Government Area, during which PVCs and BVAS devices were reportedly stolen, further demonstrates the vulnerability of electoral infrastructure and the need for heightened protection of election personnel, materials and facilities.
As in other elections, Situation Room’s observation of INEC’s administration of the process will be in the following areas:
i. Early distribution and deployment of personnel and materials
ii. Timely opening of poll
iii. Priority Voting and availability of assistive materials for persons with disabilities
iv. Knowledge of election procedures by INEC ad hoc staff
v. Voting procedures particularly the efficacy of the new Bi-modal Verification Accreditation System (BVAS)
vi. Transmission of polling units results to the INEC Result Viewing (IReV) Portal
vii. Vote trading and
viii. Transparent Collation process
2. Security Agencies: Situation Room notes the police deployment of 15,000 personnel by the Nigeria Police, 10,210 NSCDC officials and 100 EFCC officials. Situation Room calls on deployment to be made effective across the State, taking special cognisance of the security flash points, while adhering strictly to the rules of engagement. Situation Room notes the heavy deployment of the Military for this election and are hopeful that the entire security machinery will conduct themselves responsibly and adhere to civil and responsible terms of engagement under the rule of law. We further call on the Police to document evidence of violence, infractions and their perpetrators and share this information with INEC, in order to speedily bring offenders to book no matter how highly placed. Security Agencies to be vigilant and apprehend offenders with regards to vote buying and not necessarily wait for election officials to point them out
3. Political Parties: The Situation Room is particularly concerned that the convergence of political rivalry, allegations of sponsorship of violence, the proliferation of political thugs and unfortunate fatalities numbering about 16 as tracked by Kimpact Development Initiative and counting since September 2025. This is not limited to just one party, as alleged perpetrators are affiliated with both the All-Progressives Congress (APC) and the Accord party. We call on the political parties and their supporters to play by the rules and to support the conduct of a free, fair and credible election in Osun State.
We note the intervention of the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Tunji Disu, who has warned political actors and citizens against violence and directed security agencies to bring perpetrators of political violence to justice. The Situation Room welcomes this intervention but stresses that public assurances must now be translated into visible, impartial and preventive action.
Situation Room Calls for Immediate Action
The Situation Room therefore calls on all stakeholders to take the following urgent measures:
1. The security agencies must act impartially and decisively.
The Nigeria Police Force and other security agencies must demonstrate political neutrality and enforce the law without fear or favour. Arrests, investigations and prosecutions must be based on credible evidence and not on political affiliation. Security agencies must resist being drawn into partisan political contests. Any perception that security institutions are being deployed selectively against particular political parties or candidates will undermine public confidence and could trigger further violence.
2. Security must be risk-based and intelligence-led.
The identification of flashpoints and violence-risk LGAs should translate into concrete deployment and contingency plans. Security agencies must ensure that adequate personnel are deployed to identified high-risk locations while avoiding excessive militarisation of the electoral environment. Security presence should reassure voters, not intimidate them.
3. Political parties and candidates should take responsibility for the political environment.
The Situation Room calls on all candidates, party leaders, campaign organisations and political influencers to stop inflammatory rhetoric, threats, incitement and the circulation of unverified information. Political leaders must publicly instruct their supporters to reject violence and must accept that an election is a contest over ideas, policies and votes—not a battle to be won through intimidation or force.
4. INEC should maintain transparency and public communication.
INEC should provide timely information on the security of election materials, contingency arrangements, polling locations affected by security concerns and any changes that may affect voters. The Commission must ensure that no security challenge becomes an excuse for arbitrary cancellation, relocation or manipulation of polling activities.
5. The rights of voters must be protected.
Every eligible voter in Osun State has a constitutional right to participate freely in the election without intimidation, harassment or violence. Security agencies must ensure that voters can travel to polling units, vote and return home safely. Particular attention should be given to women, persons with disabilities, older persons and other groups that may be disproportionately affected by insecurity.
A Call to the Citizens of Osun State
The Situation Room calls on the citizens of Osun State not to allow political actors, thugs or purveyors of disinformation to deprive them of their democratic rights. Voters should reject violence, avoid confrontation at polling units, verify information before sharing it and report threats or incidents through appropriate channels. The people of Osun State have a responsibility to protect the peace of their communities, but this responsibility cannot substitute for the primary duty of the state to protect citizens and secure the electoral process.
The Situation Room therefore urges the Federal Government, INEC, the Nigeria Police Force, other security and law enforcement agencies, political parties, traditional and religious leaders, the media and civil society organisations to maintain heightened vigilance throughout the remaining pre-election period, Election Day and the immediate post-election period.
The Situation Room will continue to monitor the security and electoral environment in Osun State and will document and report incidents that threaten the credibility, peacefulness and integrity of the electoral process.
——————————-
SIGNED:
Y.Z Ya’u
Convener, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room
Mma Odi
Co-Convener, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room
Celestine Odo
Co-Convener, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room
—————————–
The Situation Room is made up of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) working in support of credible and transparent elections in Nigeria numbering more than seventy.