By Shina Abubakar

Osun State House of Assembly has kicked over the redeployment of the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Dr Mutiu Agboke, by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the 2026 Osun State governorship election.

This is just as the legislatures expressed worry over an alleged plot to transfer other electoral officials, warning that such moves could undermine the integrity of the 2026 governorship election.

It would be recalled that the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP, had petitioned the commission alleging the REC of partisanship before his transfer to Ondo State on Wednesday.

Reacting to the development, Osun Assembly, through its Speaker, Adewale Egbedun, while addressing newsmen at the assembly complex on Thursday, described the development as a move to manoeuvre the August 15 governorship poll in the state.

While demanding free, fair and credible elections in the State, the speaker sought protection for democracy, defence for institutional integrity, and safeguarding the will of the people.

He said, “It has come to our notice that there has been a sudden redeployment of the Resident Electoral Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission in Osun State. We also have credible information that further deployments of interested people are being planned and may extend to other key officials, including the Administrative Secretary, Electoral Officers, Assistant Electoral Officers, and ICT personnel across the State.”

Egbedun stated that they are concerned by a deliberate pattern of actions aimed at influencing the electoral process in Osun State, noting that “Ekiti State, which precedes Osun in the electoral calendar, has not witnessed such widespread deployments of electoral officials.”

He asserted that no amount of administrative changes or deployments of interested officials will override the will of the people of Osun State.

The Speaker alleged that there are plans to compromise the process through the use of APC members in critical electoral roles such as returning officers and supervisors in Ife Ijesa Senatorial District.

He warned that anyone deployed to conduct elections in Osun State must do so in strict accordance with the Constitution and the electoral law.