The campaign organisation of Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke has petitioned the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), demanding the unconditional release of supporters it claims were unlawfully arrested and detained by the police ahead of the August 15 governorship election.
The petition was submitted on Monday at the NHRC headquarters in Abuja by the Imole Campaign Council, the group spearheading Adeleke’s re-election campaign.
Speaking with journalists after the submission, the campaign’s spokesperson, Pelumi Olajengbesi, accused the Osun State Police Command of intimidating supporters of the governor in the build-up to the election.
According to him, several supporters have been arrested without justification and kept in detention, prompting the campaign to seek the intervention of the human rights commission.
Olajengbesi singled out one supporter, Popoola Alabama, who was arrested in Ilesa over alleged political violence and remains in police custody.
He said efforts to secure Alabama’s release were unsuccessful after police claimed he was being held over allegations of armed robbery and illegal possession of firearms.
The campaign spokesperson, however, challenged the police to produce any evidence linking the suspect to the allegations.
“We visited the police and asked for the exhibit with which he was arrested. We were informed that he was arrested while campaigning and that nothing was found on him, which is why he has not been charged in court,” Olajengbesi said.
“If there are firearms found on Mr Alabama, let the police produce them before the public. You cannot arrest an innocent citizen, obtain a detention order and keep him in custody without any evidence or explanation.”
The campaign urged the NHRC to investigate what it described as unlawful detention and human rights violations against its supporters.
Olajengbesi also alleged that political rights were being violated in Osun simply because of the approaching governorship election.
The petition comes four days after the campaign council wrote to President Bola Tinubu, alleging that its supporters were being harassed ahead of the poll.
Political tension has risen across Osun in recent weeks following violent clashes involving rival political groups.
Members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), believed to be aligned with the All Progressives Congress (APC), recently took over motor parks across the state, displacing officials appointed by the state government. The development triggered violent confrontations that reportedly left several people injured.
The tension escalated further after police raided the Osogbo residence of the Secretary to the State Government, Teslim Igbalaye, arresting him and five others over alleged vote-buying.
Police said they recovered ₦4.8 million, a Dynabook laptop, a photocopying machine, a printer, two voter cards and a voter register covering Wards 1 to 15 in Osogbo Local Government Area. Igbalaye was later released following the intervention of the Osun State Government and the State House of Assembly.
Last Friday, the Inspector-General of Police deployed Samuel Erale as the new Commissioner of Police in Osun to oversee election security, replacing Ibrahim Gotan after months of complaints by the state government over alleged partisanship.
The Imole Campaign Council also called on the NHRC to compel the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, to publicly assure Nigerians that the police would remain neutral and ensure a free, fair and credible election.
The organisation further urged President Tinubu to ensure that security agencies are not used to influence the outcome of the governorship poll.
It maintained that democratic elections should reflect the will of the people and warned against using state institutions as instruments of political oppression.
