By VICTOR ADEOTI

Security was on Friday beefed up at the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) state headquarters, ahead of Saturday’s governorship election in the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that soldiers were seen at strategic locations around the INEC office on Osogbo-Gbongan Road.

The road leading to the INEC office was also barricaded by soldiers, monitoring the flow of traffic.

NAN reports that INEC had, on Thursday night, commenced the distribution of sensitive materials to the 30 local government areas of Osun, ahead of the election.

The materials were distributed under the supervision of the state Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Mrs Oluwatoyin Babalola.

The distribution had earlier been delayed following a Federal High Court judgment directing INEC to include the Social Democratic Party (SDP) on the ballot.

The SDP was subsequently added to the list of the 14 political parties for which ballot papers had earlier been printed, bringing the total number of the parties participating in the election to 15.

As of 11:30 p.m., buses deployed for the exercise were seen leaving the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) premises in Osogbo for their assigned local government areas.

Meanwhile, civil servants in the state stayed away from office on Friday despite the fact that no public holiday was declared by the state government.

A visit to the State Secretariat in Abere area of Osogbo showed that civil servants were not on seat, leaving the secretariat deserted.

NAN also observed that many traders did not open their shops for business, while the volume of traffic in the town was unusually low.

Some of the residents who spoke with NAN said that they decided to remain indoors due to the tension created through violence and killings ahead of the election.

A trader, Mrs Tayo Akanji, said that she decided not to open her shop due to fear of possible attack.

“I did not open my shop due to fear of possible attack,” she said.

Another trader, Mr Remi Akanni, said he also refused to open his shop due to fear of looting.

Akanni said the killings and violence ahead of the election was already creating panic among the populace. (NAN)

•Police operatives on the premises of INEC in Osun State prepare for deployment on Friday August 14, 2026, ahead of the August 15, 2026 governorship election

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