Hashim Abioye, Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC), has accused the police of interfering with the local government elections by detaining election officials and obstructing journalists’ coverage of the event.
In a video posted on X, Abioye revealed that several OSSIEC staff were arrested while en route to polling units on Saturday.
He further claimed that police officers sealed off the commission’s office, preventing journalists from obtaining the necessary accreditation tags and jackets to cover the election.
Despite these setbacks, Abioye reassured voters that election materials had been successfully distributed to the affected areas and that adequate resources were in place to ensure the election proceeded smoothly.
He also apologised to journalists for the accreditation challenges, attributing them to the police’s actions in blocking access to the commission’s office.
“So far so good, the reports have been positive and the conduct has been very smooth and peaceful as against the false alarm raised by the police. Everywhere is calm,” Abioye said.
“The only thing is that in some of the areas in which materials are supposed to have arrived for voters to cast their votes, we had reports of police arresting our officials.
“I don’t know on whose order because there is no court order that warranted the arrest of officers of our officials.
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“As it is, we have deployed materials to those units because we have enough on the ground.
“For our people in the media community, I want to apologise for the inadequacy on the tags and the jackets because we have enough but the police sealed our office and that was not warranted at all.”
Abioye’s remarks follow the police’s call to suspend the local government election, citing concerns over potential violence and security threats.
On Friday, police spokesperson Muyiwa Adejobi revealed that “credible intelligence” indicated some individuals were plotting to disturb the peace in Osun State.
In response, Osun Governor Ademola Adeleke reassured all stakeholders of his commitment to a free and fair election. He urged candidates to campaign peacefully, stressing the importance of avoiding violence or spreading misinformation.
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