By: Manoah Kikekon
OSOGBO, Nigeria — Security tensions flared on election morning in Osun State as the Imole Campaign Council (TICC) raised an urgent alarm regarding the heavy deployment of armed security personnel around the private residence of the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Adewale Egbedun.
According to official statements released by TICC spokesperson Pelumi Olajengbesi, Esq., a convoy of more than 10 black Hilux vans carrying heavily armed operatives descended upon the Speaker's compound, effectively locking down the premises and barring all occupants from exiting.
While details surrounding the operation remain fluid, the campaign council emphasized that the exact motives behind the heavy deployment have not yet been independently verified. Whether the armed personnel were dispatched to reinforce security or to execute official directives remains shrouded in uncertainty.
In a formal statement, the council voiced deep concern over the timing of the incident on a crucial election day:
"We have received reports that the residence of the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Adewale Egbedun, has been surrounded by armed security personnel who reportedly arrived in more than 10 black Hilux vehicles... We have also been informed that the residence has effectively been sealed off, with everyone inside reportedly prevented from leaving the premises."
Efforts by the TICC leadership to secure immediate clarification from law enforcement authorities hit a brick wall. The council reported that multiple phone calls placed to the official mobile lines of the Commissioner of Police assigned to oversee the election and the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of the poll went unanswered. Furthermore, attempts to contact the official Police Situation Room proved abortive, as the designated telephone line was reportedly switched off.
Expressing apprehension over the radio silence from security chiefs, the council underscored the critical need for a transparent and intimidation-free electoral atmosphere across Osun State:
"On this Election Day, the people of Osun State deserve an atmosphere free from fear and intimidation. Security deployments must inspire confidence and protect the integrity of the electoral process."
As voters head to the polls, the campaign council has urged higher security authorities to issue a prompt public statement clarifying the lockdown. TICC maintained that the democratic rights of citizens must be preserved without interference, coercion, or undue pressure.
"The people of Osun State must be allowed to come out peacefully and decide their future according to their own conscience, without intimidation or interference," the council reiterated.