Osun Election: Police Confirm Arrest of Accord Lawmaker, 146 Suspected ‘Mercenaries’ 

The police have confirmed the arrest of an Accord Party lawmaker, Abiola Ibrahim Inaolaji, with about 146 people that reportedly gathered at his residence in Ikire, Irewole Local Government Area.

The development came on Saturday as the 2026 Osun governorship election commenced amid heightened security operations aimed at preventing electoral malpractices and other activities capable of undermining the credibility of the poll.

The police described the large group as suspected electoral mercenaries, while the lawmaker reportedly maintained that those at his residence were voters who had come to participate in the election.

Ibrahim, who represents the Irewole/Isokan State Constituency in the Osun State House of Assembly, was arrested in the early hours of Saturday by operatives of the Federal Bureau of Investigation-Intelligence Response Team (FBI-IRT).

Confirming the arrest, the Osun State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, said the lawmaker was apprehended alongside about 146 people suspected of being electoral mercenaries.

“He was arrested in Ikire for harbouring suspected mercenaries. He was arrested with about 146 people,” Ojelabi said, according to reports.

The arrest followed the emergence of a video showing security operatives confronting the lawmaker at the residence over the presence of a large number of people.

In the footage, Ibrahim identified himself as an Accord Party member and insisted that the people gathered there were voters.

He was quoted as saying that some of them were indigenes from outside the area, adding that he did not hire them or dictate how they should vote.

Reports also indicated that security operatives recovered more than 200 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) during the operation, although details surrounding the ownership and circumstances of the cards remained subject to investigation.

The arrest comes against the backdrop of intensified security measures for the Osun governorship election, with security agencies under pressure to prevent vote buying, voter inducement, movement of voters across state boundaries and other forms of electoral manipulation.

The police said investigations were ongoing to establish the identities of those arrested, determine their roles and unravel the circumstances surrounding their presence at the lawmaker’s residence.

The suspects remain in police custody as investigations continue.

Osun Guber 2026: Adeleke Alleges Police Aiding APC to Rig Election

Osun State Governor and governorship candidate of the Accord Party, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has accused the Nigeria Police Force of aiding the All Progressives Congress (APC) to manipulate the ongoing governorship election in the state, alleging the deployment of fake ballot papers, teargassing of voters in Modakeke and Oba Ogun, and a plot to bypass established collation procedures. Speaking to journalists shortly after casting his vote at Unit 9, Ward 2, Sagba Abogunde in Ede-North Local Government Area on Saturday, August 15, 2026, Adeleke said that they don’t want violence in Osun and all they want is a free and fair election so that people can perform their civic duty. The governor insisted that the collation process must follow due procedure, warning against any attempt to bypass it, stating that the pattern of voting should be from units to wards and to local governments, and that taking local government collation straight to the state capital is unacceptable and a form of rigging.

Adeleke also raised the alarm over an alleged plot by the APC to deploy fake ballot papers during the election, saying he heard it on authority that the APC are trying to rig and have some fake ballot papers, and he wants Osun people to watch out for that too, as they don’t accept that in Osun. The governor further alleged that police officers were teargassing residents in Modakeke and Oba Ogun to disperse voters at polling units, stating that right as he was voting, he had just received a call in Modakeke and Oba Ogun that police are aiding them to teargas them so that people can run away. The governor’s allegation of teargassing was corroborated by reports from Modakeke Ward 10, where a woman in a video circulating on social media claimed that police officers had fired teargas at people and disrupted voting, questioning why a police officer would drop tear gas and stating that they had gone with materials, with no fight or disruption to warrant such action, and that the corps members all ran for their lives. Eyewitnesses also reported that suspected policemen arrived at the polling area, seized election materials, and released teargas, forcing voters and election officials to flee.

READ ALSO:

• Jowizaza’s Billionaire Father, Reverend Sister Regain Freedom After N1.5bn Ransom Demand
• [UPDATED] Osun Election: Police Arrest Lawmaker with 200 PVCs, 146 Suspected Electoral Mercenaries
• 2027 Hajj: NAHCON Announces N7.5m–N7.8m Fares, Sets September 26 Biometric Deadline

Adeleke also alleged that a police officer identified as “London,” reportedly brought from Port Harcourt, had been deployed to Ede to disrupt voting, and he called on the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, to immediately move the officer away from the state. The governor stated that he is calling on the IGP and all security agencies to watch out for this police officer from Port Harcourt, as he understands that the APC brought him to Osun State to carry out a hatchet job and cause disruption in his town, Ede, so that people will not be able to vote. Despite the reported disruption, the governor commended the resolve of residents, saying that people are resolute and just want to perform their civic duty, and he then called on security agencies to remain impartial throughout the process, urging them to please be neutral.

The allegations of police complicity come after the Imole Campaign Council had earlier petitioned the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), alleging widespread human rights abuses, politically motivated arrests, and intimidation of its members ahead of the election. The campaign claimed over 60 supporters were arbitrarily arrested and detained in police formations solely because of their political affiliation, and that elements within the police were working with APC thugs to kill opposition supporters. The police are yet to react to the accusations, and neither INEC nor the APC has responded to the allegations at the time of this report. The election is well underway, with INEC reporting that 94.5 per cent of polling units had opened by 8:30 a.m. on election day, with 207 polling units experiencing minor delays but becoming fully operational by 9:00 a.m., and INEC assessed the RAC activation and polling unit opening processes as peaceful, orderly and timely.

Osun Guber 2026: Adeleke Alleges Police Aiding APC to Rig Election