RULAAC congratulates Adeleke on Osun re-election, seeks prosecution of election offenders
The Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), has congratulated Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party on his re-election as Osun State Governor, while calling for stronger, rights-based election security ahead of the 2027 general elections.
In a statement by Executive Director Okechukwu Nwanguma, RULAAC said the governorship election held on 15 August 2026 was largely peaceful despite “an intensely competitive and highly charged electoral environment.”
According to INEC, Adeleke polled 511,067 votes to defeat his closest challenger, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress, who scored 444,815 votes.
RULAAC also commended the people of Osun for choosing “the democratic path” and urged all candidates with grievances to pursue them through legal channels.
The rights group expressed concern over reported threats of violence, intimidation, vote buying and mobilisation of political thugs ahead of the poll.
Citing preliminary findings from the EU-SDGN Election Observation Hub, RULAAC noted that observers recorded 323 electoral offences and irregularities and 38 security incidents across the 30 LGAs. These included thuggery, attacks on electoral officials and voter intimidation.
“These incidents should not be allowed to disappear after the declaration of the winner. They require documentation, investigation and, where appropriate, prosecution,” the statement said.
RULAAC particularly praised the Nigeria Police Force under Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, for operational preparations and commitment to neutrality.
It highlighted the deployment of senior officers, including a Deputy Inspector-General, and the decision to restrict election security duties to constitutionally recognised agencies, excluding Amotekun, vigilantes and other non-state groups.
“The Police decision.l was significant. While community-based security actors have legitimate roles in other contexts, the election environment requires a clear chain of command,” RULAAC stated.
The group also commended the DSS, NSCDC and FRSC for helping prevent a widespread breakdown of order. The Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room similarly rated security deployment highly.
Despite the commendation, RULAAC said misconduct must still be addressed. It cited reports of voter intimidation, the harassment of Dataphyte observers, and a tear gas incident in Modakeke which police described as accidental.
It, however, applauded the swift apprehension of a police officer allegedly caught on video disrupting the process, saying such responsiveness “demonstrates that institutional accountability is possible.”
Looking ahead, RULAAC said Osun 2026 should serve as a laboratory for improving Nigeria’s election-security architecture.
“The success of an election-security operation should ultimately be judged by whether every citizen can vote freely, every candidate can compete without intimidation, every observer can observe without harassment,” RULAAC said.
