Police invite Osun’s APC senator over viral threat to ‘kill’ Accord Party members

Osun State police have summoned Senator Francis Fadahunsi, representing Osun East, for questioning over a video that has circulated widely online. The footage appears to show the senator urging All Progressives Congress (APC) supporters to "kill" members of the rival Accord Party in the lead-up to Saturday's governorship election.

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The cap they wear – it is Yellow Fever cap, it is the cap of an animal. It is animal that kills. Have you ever heard that APC killed anyone? Are those being killed not your people? So, we have come to tell you, up till the day of the election, if we see them, it is killing.

The incident occurred during a protest at the Owa Obokun of Ijesaland's palace in Ilesa. Senator Fadahunsi, accompanied by other APC leaders, accused Accord Party members of killing APC members in the region. In the video, he is heard saying, "So, we have come to tell you, up till the day of the election, if we see them, it is killing." He also referred to the Accord Party's yellow symbol as a "Yellow Fever cap" and the "cap of an animal."

The senator's inflammatory remarks followed a shooting incident in Ilesa that resulted in three deaths amid heightened political tensions. The Osun State Police Command has requested Senator Fadahunsi to appear before the State Criminal Investigation Department in Osogbo on Wednesday. The invitation, signed by the Commissioner of Police overseeing the election, Samuel Erale Etaifo, cites information alleging that the senator made statements considered "threatening, inciting and intimidating."

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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.

However, Senator Fadahunsi has since offered a different interpretation of his words. Speaking on Channels Television, he asserted that his statement was political and metaphorical. He claimed he was urging his supporters to "shut them down with votes" and defeat the Accord Party at the ballot box, rather than engaging in physical attacks. The police are seeking to clarify the circumstances surrounding the statement, which has intensified concerns about political violence ahead of the August 15 governorship election.

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I meant shut them down with votes.