By Victoria Victor
The Kimpact Development Initiative (KDI) says 19 people were killed in election-related violence in Osun State before and after the August 15, 2026 governorship election.
The organisation said 15 people died before the election and four others after the poll, but no deaths were recorded on election day.
KDI Executive Director, Bukola Idowu, disclosed this on Friday, October 30, in Abuja while presenting the organisation’s findings on election security, ballot integrity and campaign finance in the 2026 Ekiti and Osun governorship elections.
Idowu said KDI recorded 81 incidents of election violence in Osun before the election, 17 on election day and 13 after the poll. “Two people were killed in post-election violence in Ikire. In Ekiti, the organisation recorded 15 incidents before the election, resulting in two deaths, and 11 on election day. No post-election incidents were reported”.
He noted that the findings showed why election security assessments should cover the periods before, during and after voting, rather than focus only on events at polling units.
KDI also reported that 295 people were arrested in Osun on election day. Idowu said 293 were released on bail, while two remained in custody and had yet to be taken to court as of Thursday.
Idowu criticised the handling of inflammatory political statements, citing an alleged threat by a serving senator from Osun State against opposition members, saying the senator was invited by the police but no further action had been taken.
In a keynote speech by a media professional, Charles Aniogolu, said credible elections required more than the announcement of winners. He said voters must be protected, results independently verified and money prevented from distorting political competition. He urged security agencies to adopt preventive, intelligence-led measures throughout the electoral cycle.
On election results, Aniogolu said publishing polling unit result forms on the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Result Viewing Portal, IReV, was not enough unless the documents were complete, legible and consistent.
On campaign finance, he raised concerns about concentrated spending, expensive campaign events, possible vote-buying expenditure and gaps between monitored spending and publicly identifiable campaign income. He urged political parties and candidates to comply with expenditure limits under the Electoral Act and disclose donations, including contributions in kind and spending by third parties.
A Political scientist Professor Nnamdi Aribiah urged proactive security measures and raised concerns about election spending at state and local government levels in Ekiti and Osun.
Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission ICPC Dr Musa Aliyu, stressed the importance of integrity and ethical conduct in public office.
The speakers urged relevant institutions to act on the findings and implement reforms before the 2027 general election. The study was supported by the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Edited by Julian Osamoto
