Osun State Governor and Accord Party governorship candidate, Ademola Adeleke, has raised concerns over alleged attempts to disrupt or take control of collation centres as the Osun Election 2026 moves into its decisive results phase. Adeleke made the allegations on Saturday night, August 15, urging President Bola Tinubu and security agencies to protect the electoral process and ensure that polling results are safely collated.
The governor called for heightened security around polling units and collation centres, saying reports of possible interference could undermine the credibility of the election. He also appealed to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to receive the necessary institutional support to complete the process transparently.
Adeleke’s warning came after voting had taken place across Osun State and attention shifted towards the counting, transmission and collation of results.
In a statement published on his X account, Adeleke appealed directly to President Tinubu to instruct the heads of security agencies deployed for the election to protect voters, electoral officials and the integrity of the results process.
The governor said he had received reports of efforts by unnamed political actors to interfere with collation centres across the state. He described the alleged attempts as unacceptable and urged security personnel to remain committed to protecting the electoral process.
Adeleke specifically called on security agencies to maintain their presence at locations where results were being processed.
His appeal came at a critical point in the Osun governorship election, with political parties expected to closely monitor the movement and collation of results after polling.
The governor’s intervention places security around collation centres at the centre of attention as INEC begins the next stage of determining the election’s outcome.
In a subsequent social media post, Adeleke raised another allegation, claiming he had been informed of an alleged directive to withdraw security personnel from polling units and collation centres in Osun.
According to the governor, such a move could leave voters and INEC personnel vulnerable during a particularly sensitive phase of the election.
Adeleke urged the Inspector-General of Police and the Director-General of the Department of State Services to prevent any action that could disrupt the electoral process.
However, the allegations remain claims by the governor. At the time of the report, no independent evidence establishing the alleged directive or publicly identifying those responsible had been provided.
That distinction is important as the election moves into collation. Security agencies and INEC would need to clarify any reported changes to deployment arrangements to prevent speculation from further escalating political tensions.
Collation represents one of the most sensitive stages of an election because results recorded at polling units must pass through established administrative procedures before the final statewide outcome is declared.
The process requires electoral officials to safeguard result sheets, maintain proper documentation and ensure that legitimate objections are handled according to electoral rules.
For the Osun Election 2026, key issues to monitor include:
- Security at polling units and collation centres.
- Movement and custody of electoral materials.
- Upload of polling-unit result sheets to IReV.
- Verification and collation of results.
- Objections raised by political parties and their agents.
- INEC’s eventual declaration of the winner.
Any confirmed interference at this stage could raise serious questions about the credibility of the election and trigger disputes from candidates or political parties.
The governor’s warning comes as INEC continues the electronic publication of polling-unit results through its Result Viewing Portal, IReV.
The commission’s result-management process is expected to provide stakeholders with access to polling-unit result sheets while officials continue with formal collation.
For INEC, the immediate challenge is to ensure that the transition from voting to collation remains orderly and transparent.
Political parties and observers are also expected to scrutinise the results emerging from polling units and compare them with copies of result sheets available to party agents.
The credibility of the final result will therefore depend not only on the number of votes recorded but also on whether the entire process can withstand allegations of interference.
Adeleke maintained that the votes cast by Osun residents must determine the eventual winner.
The governor said INEC should receive the support required to conclude the election and produce a result that reflects the choice of voters.
His comments come as the incumbent seeks another term while facing opposition candidates in a competitive governorship contest.
The focus has now shifted from campaign rallies and polling-day turnout to the protection, transmission and collation of results.
At this stage, allegations from any candidate should be assessed against verifiable evidence from INEC, security agencies, accredited observers and other credible sources.
The next major development will be the continued collation of results from polling units and local government areas.
INEC will be expected to manage the process while security agencies maintain order around sensitive electoral locations.
Stakeholders will be watching for:
- Further uploads of polling-unit results to IReV.
- Official updates from INEC on the collation process.
- Security arrangements at collation centres.
- Complaints or objections from political parties.
- The eventual statewide declaration by INEC.
The allegations made by Adeleke will also require clarification if authorities identify any evidence of an organised attempt to interfere with collation.
Adeleke’s warning has placed security at Osun Election 2026 collation centres under renewed scrutiny as the state moves from voting to results management.
While the governor has alleged attempts to disrupt or take control of collation centres and claimed that security personnel could be withdrawn, those allegations had not been independently established at the time of reporting.
The priority now is for INEC and security agencies to provide a transparent and secure environment for counting and collation. The credibility of the final Osun election result will ultimately depend on whether voters’ ballots are accurately recorded, properly collated and protected from interference.
