The Osun State Police Command has invited Senator Francis Fadahunsi over a viral video in which he is alleged to have called for the killing of members of the Accord Party ahead of Saturday’s governorship election.
The command described the video as a matter of “serious concern” and said the invitation was issued to allow the Osun East senator to clarify the remarks attributed to him.
Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Wednesday, Osun State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, said the police would not tolerate statements capable of inciting violence.
“He is a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We are not talking about immunity here. Even people not up to his status, we normally write invitation letters to them. If they honour it, fine,” Ojelabi said.
“If they don’t, then we go after them.”
He added that Fadahunsi had already been invited and that details of his response would be made public.
“He has been invited, and when he comes, whatever he says will be made available to the public.”
Ojelabi said the police had previously warned politicians and their supporters against inflammatory statements ahead of the election.
“Seeing that video, it calls for serious concern, and that is what led to his invitation. Let him come and tell us what he was trying to say and what he meant by ‘kill them’ in that video,” he said.
The police spokesman said it was important for Fadahunsi himself to explain the context of the statement rather than allow investigators to interpret it.
“Let the speaker come and explain what he meant in the video because I might try to interpret it and might be different from what he meant. But we all heard what he said, and we have a very large community of Yorubas that understood what he said very well.”
A police invitation letter dated August 11, 2026, ordered Fadahunsi to report to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Osogbo at 11:00 am on Wednesday, August 12.
The letter, signed by Samuel Etaifo Erale, Commissioner of Police, Elections in Osun State, asked the senator to clarify statements allegedly made during an APC campaign in Ilesa on Tuesday.
“The invitation is premised on information in possession of the Nigeria Police alleging that during your address at the aforementioned programme, you made statements considered to be threatening, inciting and intimidating in nature, and the statement has already been in circulation on various electronic and social media platforms,” the letter stated.
Fadahunsi Says Video Was Edited
Fadahunsi has denied that he called for the killing of Accord Party members, describing the viral footage as a “deliberate misrepresentation” of his remarks.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the senator said he was responding to what he described as the continued killing of APC members by alleged Accord Party thugs in Ilesa and other parts of Osun State.
“The video was deliberately edited to distort what I actually said,” Fadahunsi stated.
“What I said was that if the alleged killing of our party members by Accord Party thugs does not stop, our party will retaliate. I was referring to the continued violence and attacks against our members in Ilesa and other parts of the state.”
He said his warning was directed at the alleged attacks on APC supporters and maintained that the party would defend its members if the violence continued.
“My statement was very clear: if the killings do not stop, we shall also retaliate. We are here to lodge complaints and demand justice. It is unacceptable for human beings to kill fellow human beings the way our members are allegedly being killed in Ilesa.”
Fadahunsi added that he was referring to Nigerians from the same communities and said his party would not remain passive if its members were attacked on election day.
“All those being killed are Nigerians and, indeed, sons and daughters of the same communities. I stated unequivocally that if our party members are killed again, we will not simply fold our arms and watch. We will defend our people, even if such an incident occurs on election day.”
He also accused Davido and Olajengbesi of taking less than two minutes from a speech that lasted about 24 minutes and circulating it for political purposes.
Adeleke Demands Arrest
The controversy followed a demand by Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke for the arrest and investigation of Fadahunsi over the video.
Adeleke, who is seeking re-election on the Accord Party platform, accused the senator of inciting violence and “genocide” against Accord Party members.
At a press conference on Tuesday, the governor described the alleged comments as a “national security threat” and said he had raised the matter with the Inspector General of Police, Tunji Disu.
“This is now beyond politics. This is now a national security threat that requires the attention of Mr President through the office of the National Security Adviser. I have raised this issue with the IGP and demanded the immediate investigation and arrest of Senator Fadahunsi.
“The IGP has confirmed the video and assured me of immediate action,” Adeleke said.
The governor also called for an end to what he described as the “illegal operations” of the Intelligence Response Team, alleging that the team had been arresting Accord Party leaders across local government areas.
“We ask that the police and the DSS immediately arrest Senator Fadahunsi for his incitement to genocide against the people of Ijesahland and Osun State. This is to prove to the world that Nigeria is a state governed by the rule of law.”
The police invitation comes just days before the Osun governorship election, with competing political camps trading allegations of violence and intimidation ahead of the poll.
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