Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, on Tuesday alleged that a police directive had been issued for the arrest of Accord Party leaders in the state, and demanded the arrest of Senator Francis Fadahunsi over a viral video in which the lawmaker is heard urging supporters to attack members of the opposition party ahead of Saturday’s governorship election.
Addressing journalists in Osogbo, Adeleke said he had received “credible reports that a police signal has arrived in Osun directing immediate arrest of Accord Party leaders,” adding that the directive allegedly required that those detained be taken to Abuja and held until Monday, after the August 15 poll.
“I am appealing to [the Inspector-General of Police] that this development, if true, is illegal, and presents Nigeria as a lawless country,” the governor said. “Arresting Accord Party leaders on the eve of an election amounts to police helping and assisting the APC to rig the election.”
Adeleke called on the Inspector-General of Police to publicly deny that any such order had been given. “It is illegal and a threat to democracy for Accord Party leaders to be arrested on the eve of an election on trumped-up charges,” he said, adding that he was “disturbed” that more than 62 Accord Party leaders remained in what he described as illegal police detention without charge.
The governor’s remarks came amid outrage over a video circulating on social media that appears to show Fadahunsi, who represents Osun East in the Senate, addressing a gathering in Ilesa. Adeleke said the senator “called for the killing of Accord Party leaders and their families,” alleging that Fadahunsi told supporters that where Accord leaders could not be found, “they should kill their wives and children.”
Fadahunsi has disputed that characterisation. In a statement issued by his media office, the senator said the clip circulating online — reportedly taken from a speech lasting about 24 minutes — was “deliberately edited to distort” his remarks, and that he had been referring to retaliation against alleged attacks on APC members, not calling for violence against Accord Party supporters. “For the avoidance of doubt, the Senator’s statement was purely political and metaphorical,” his office said.
Describing the matter as “beyond politics,” Adeleke said it now constituted “a national security threat that requires the attention of Mr President through the office of the National Security Adviser.” He said he had raised the video with the Inspector-General of Police and demanded Fadahunsi’s immediate investigation and arrest, and that the police chief had confirmed awareness of the video and promised action.
Adeleke made a series of demands to security agencies. He called on the Inspector-General of Police to halt what he described as the “illegal operations” of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT), which he said had been arresting Accord Party leaders across local government areas “for no just reason.”
He also asked that the police and the Department of State Services (DSS) arrest Fadahunsi over what he termed “incitement to genocide against the people of Ijesaland and Osun state,” and urged the Inspector-General to “enforce due process and fair policing by aborting all anti-people plots against democracy” in the state. He further called on police and other security agencies to act in line with the rule of law before, during and after Saturday’s election.
The Osun State Police Command has since summoned Fadahunsi over the video. Amnesty International has also called for the senator to be held accountable, describing his remarks as “reckless” and a deliberate attempt to incite violence ahead of the vote.
Neither the Nigeria Police Force nor Fadahunsi’s office has independently confirmed the existence of the arrest directive described by Adeleke. The claims and allegations in this report remain unverified pending an official police response.
