The Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, has said the police will deploy a minimum of four officers to each polling unit for the forthcoming Osun State governorship election.

Disu said the deployment would be one of the largest security operations the state had witnessed, noting that Osun had 30 local governments, 332 wards and 3,673 polling units.

Speaking at a meeting with civil society organisations in Abuja on Friday, the IG said the scale of the operation was larger than the deployment for the last election held in Anambra State, which he described as peaceful and largely free of complaints.

He said the police intended to have no fewer than four officers stationed at each polling unit, in addition to personnel from other security agencies expected to support the police at the same locations.

Disu said the scale of the deployment reflected both the number of polling units and the tension already building around the election.

“So it’s a very, very large one. Larger than the last election we had in Ekiti. I’m happy you mentioned Ekiti. Beautiful election. I don’t think we had complaints. We deployed just like we are doing in Osun. But Osun case we are deploying more than that. The number of officers who are deploying is huge. But you take into consideration the tension that the election is already generating and the fact that we have 3,673 polling units. We intend to have nothing less than 4 policemen in all the polling booths. We intend to do that. And then don’t forget that then we have other sister agencies supporting us who should also be at the polling units. So when you hear the number of officers deployed, that’s one of the reasons why we need to deploy early. And our sister agencies too have been able to assign duties to them who wanted to assist us there.”

The IG said the heavy deployment was intended to reassure residents and encourage them to vote without fear, stating that every officer visible on the streets had been deployed specifically to protect voters.

He said the police had begun deploying teams to Osun ahead of the election, particularly to areas identified as having a higher risk of violence.

He urged political parties, candidates and their supporters to conduct themselves responsibly before, during and after the election, stressing that political contests should be based on ideas and policies rather than violence.

“No political ambition is worth the loss of a single Nigerian life,” Disu said.

The Executive Director of Yiaga Africa, Samson Itodo, described the August 15 Osun State governorship election as a “litmus test” for rebuilding public trust and confidence in Nigeria’s electoral process ahead of the 2027 general elections.

He identified neutrality of security agencies, particularly the police, as a major concern among voters and other stakeholders.

“The neutrality of the police force is central to this. Of particular concern to the public is the neutrality of our security agencies,” Itodo said.

On the security situation, Itodo said 13 of Osun’s 30 local government areas had been classified as high-risk because of killings, violent attacks and heightened political tension.

He said, “If you see the pattern of violence across the state, it has morphed or metamorphosed from coordinated shootings around multiple neighbourhoods to political abductions and then violence around state institutions, like local governments.”

Itodo identified Osogbo as a critical-risk area requiring strong urban command and control, while Irewole had also emerged as a major hotspot.

He said Iwo, Boripe, Ife Central and Ife East were among other areas requiring heightened security attention because of underlying security concerns.

The Yiaga Africa boss urged the police to adopt risk-specific deployment ahead of the poll, particularly in areas identified as hotspots.

According to Itodo, about 34 fatalities were recorded in 44 incidents across the state between June 2025 and June 2026. (PUNCH)