By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola
President Bola Tinubu has charged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies to ensure that Saturday’s Osun State governorship election is peaceful, transparent, free and fair.
The President gave the charge on Friday, 14 August, 2026, ahead of the election scheduled for Saturday, 15 August, with 15 candidates contesting the governorship seat.
Among the major contenders are the incumbent Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, and the African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate, Najeem Salaam.
Tinubu, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, urged INEC to protect the integrity of the electoral process and ensure an orderly conduct of the poll.
He said the election should provide voters with a credible platform to freely choose the person they want to govern the state for the next four years.
The President also urged INEC to use the off-cycle election as an opportunity to demonstrate its preparedness for the 2027 general elections.
According to him, the commission must show Nigerians that it is fully prepared to conduct credible elections and protect the integrity of the electoral process.
Tinubu further directed the Inspector-General of Police and other security chiefs deployed for the election to provide adequate protection for voters and electoral officials at polling units across the state.
He warned that troublemakers must not be allowed to disrupt the process, stressing that voters and election officials should be able to perform their civic duties without intimidation.
The President also called on Osun residents to turn out in their numbers and exercise their constitutional right to vote for candidates of their choice.
He urged voters to shun actions capable of undermining the peaceful conduct of the election, assuring them that necessary security measures had been put in place.
Tinubu said the ultimate test of the election would be whether its outcome reflected the genuine choice of the people of Osun State.
He stressed that the credibility of the poll must be measured by its ability to faithfully reflect the will of the electorate.
