The Nigeria Police Force said it will be deploying about 15,000 personnel, including Commissioners of Police, Assistant Inspectors-General of Police (AIGs), Police Mobile Force (PMF) operatives and other specialised units, to guarantee adequate security before, during and after the Osun state gubernatorial election scheduled for the 15th of this month.

The Commissioner of Police in charge of election security in Osun State, CP Samuel Erale Etaifo, gave made the announcement on Wednesday while addressing journalists and Divisional Police Officers at the Police Officers’ Mess in Osogbo.

He also warned politicians, security personnel and electoral officials against attempts to manipulate the governorship election ,declaring that anyone arrested for serious electoral offences will be transferred to the Force Headquarters in Abuja for investigation and prosecution

Describing the poll as a federal electoral assignment, the election security commissioner announced that suspects arrested for electoral offences would be moved out of Osun State to prevent interference with investigations and prosecution.

“This governorship election is a federal election. Anyone arrested for electoral offences will be taken out of Osun State to the Force Headquarters for further investigation and prosecution. There will be no room for interference,” he declared.

He also issued a strong warning to politicians, electoral officials and security personnel against compromising the electoral process, stressing that the Nigeria Police Force would not tolerate vote buying, ballot snatching, violence, voter intimidation or any other form of electoral malpractice.

“I want to warn all political actors, security personnel and even INEC officials not to manipulate the election. Anyone found violating the Electoral Act or attempting to undermine the credibility of the process will be held accountable,” he said.

Etaifo disclosed that he was mandated by the Inspector-General of Police to restore peace and coordinate security operations across Osun State ahead of the election.

According to him, he had already met Governor Ademola Adeleke to brief him on the assignment and reassure the state government of the police’s commitment to a peaceful poll.

“The early deployment of security personnel was intended to boost public confidence and encourage voter turnout by eliminating fear and intimidation.

“We cannot have a hostile atmosphere and expect to conduct a free and fair election. The early arrival of police personnel is to boost the confidence of the people of Osun State and discourage voter apathy,” he stated.

He maintained that the police would remain neutral and professional, promising a level playing field for all political candidates.

“Our duty is to guarantee a level playing field for every political actor. Gone are the days when the police were alleged to be partisan. Every political party must have equal opportunity to campaign and participate in the election without intimidation or harassment,” Etaifo said.

The police chief equally warned officers deployed for election against compromise or collusion with politicians, saying erring personnel would face disciplinary action.

He urged residents to remain law-abiding, cooperate with security agencies and report suspicious activities, assuring that comprehensive security arrangements had been concluded to ensure a peaceful, free and credible governorship election.

The Kabiru Turaki-led Interim National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, on Friday said it had manually submitted former President Goodluck Jonathan’s presidential nomination and the names of its other candidates for the 2027 general elections to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, despite the electoral body’s refusal to recognise the committee.

The move deepens the party’s leadership crisis, with the Turaki camp insisting it validly nominated its candidates in line with the Electoral Act and warning of fresh legal action if INEC publishes a different list.

Addressing journalists, the committee’s National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, said the party opted for manual submission after INEC declined to provide access codes for electronic submission, insisting the codes were only an administrative convenience.

“Notwithstanding INEC’s refusal to provide us with the necessary access codes… we have successfully submitted, manually and in full compliance with the Electoral Act 2026, the list of candidates sponsored by the authentic Peoples Democratic Party,” Ememobong said.

He added that the submission, which included Jonathan’s presidential nomination and all governorship, National Assembly and state assembly candidates, was acknowledged by INEC.

Ememobong warned the commission against publishing any list other than the one submitted by the committee.

“Should the Commission publish names other than those lawfully submitted by us… we are exhausting every constitutional, legal and democratic avenue to ensure that our party is not hijacked or annexed to the ruling party,” he said.

He traced the dispute to the Supreme Court judgment on the PDP’s leadership, saying the party’s Board of Trustees and a requisitioned National Executive Committee meeting constituted the Interim National Working Committee after the ruling left the party without a legally recognised national leadership.

According to him, INEC declined to recognise the interim leadership despite being formally notified, forcing the party to seek judicial intervention.

Faulting the Federal High Court judgment, Ememobong said, “The judgment… reads more like an appeal on the judgment of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal. It is clearly inconsistent with the extant decisions of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal that form the foundation of our case.”

He said the party had appealed the judgment and would also challenge alleged discrepancies between the judgment delivered in court and the Certified True Copy.

The PDP also accused INEC of abandoning its neutrality.

“The Commission’s actions have regrettably reinforced the growing public perception that it is no longer acting with the impartiality expected of the nation’s electoral umpire,” Ememobong said.

He alleged that the commission withheld material facts in court proceedings involving the party and ignored congresses it monitored, warning that such actions were eroding public confidence in the electoral process.

Ememobong further alleged that the PDP was the first target of a broader campaign to weaken opposition parties and entrench one-party dominance.

“We were the pioneer target for opposition dismantling and capture… but it has now spread to almost all the opposition parties,” he said.

Calling on Nigerians to defend multi-party democracy, Ememobong warned that electoral authoritarianism undermines democratic consolidation before expressing confidence that the party would prevail.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has disclosed that 2,339,233 registered voters will participate in the August 15 governorship election in Osun State.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, made the disclosure during a courtesy visit to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, at the commencement of his five-day readiness assessment tour of the state ahead of the poll.

According to him, the registered voters are spread across 3,763 polling units in 332 registration areas covering the state’s 30 local government areas.

Amupitan described the election as a critical test for the commission ahead of the 2027 general election, saying every necessary arrangement was being put in place to ensure a credible, peaceful and transparent exercise.

“The Osun governorship election is a very important election because of its proximity to the 2027 general election. We are determined to ensure that the process is free, fair and credible,” he said.

The INEC chairman said the commission would deploy the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) for voter accreditation, stressing that only accredited voters would be allowed to cast their ballots.

He also reassured stakeholders that the commission remained committed to conducting an election that reflected the wishes of the electorate.

Amupitan, who led a delegation of National Commissioners, the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Osun State and other senior officials of the commission to the palace, appealed to traditional rulers to mobilise support for peaceful conduct before, during and after the election.

He urged them to prevail on politicians and their supporters to shun violence, vote-buying and other electoral offences capable of undermining the credibility of the poll.

“The blood of one innocent person is not worth a governorship election. Nobody should be killed, threatened or intimidated because of an election,” he said.

The INEC chairman also warned against the spread of misinformation and disinformation, including the misuse of artificial intelligence to circulate fake election results and misleading information capable of causing public anxiety.

Responding, the Ooni of Ife commended the INEC chairman for engaging traditional rulers ahead of the election but expressed concern over the growing political tension in the state.

The monarch urged the electoral umpire to remain impartial and ensure that the election was free, fair and acceptable to all stakeholders.