Sowore mocks peace accord, cites Osun deaths despite similar pact

Omoyele Sowore, the presidential candidate for the African Action Congress, has voiced strong skepticism about the upcoming National Peace Accord, labeling it a mere ritual ahead of Nigeria's 2027 general election. Sowore pointed to the August 15 governorship election in Osun State, where he claims 50 people died, as a stark example of how such pacts have failed to prevent political violence.

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I don’t have faith in it. I’m bringing faith to the system. Those are two different things.

Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the National Peace Accord signing ceremony in Abuja, organized by the National Peace Committee chaired by former Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar, Sowore expressed his lack of faith in the process. "I don’t have faith in it. I’m bringing faith to the system. Those are two different things," he stated.

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How can you say, in good conscience, that an election that led to the death of 50 citizens of any country is a peaceful election?

He challenged the characterization of the Osun election as peaceful, questioning how any election resulting in 50 deaths could be considered such. Sowore also criticized the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for its slow upload of election results, emphasizing that free and fair elections require timely and complete dissemination of all polling unit results.

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As we speak, INEC is yet to complete the upload of all the election results three days after.

Sowore further alleged that political actors in Osun State signed a peace accord and subsequently engaged in violence, killing 50 people. He described the current peace accord signing as a ceremonial event for candidates to socialize and predicted that violence would still occur, propelled by major parties. "We conclude the ritual and move on to campaigning," he remarked.

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The people who signed the peace accord in Osun State killed 50 people after they signed the peace accord.