PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESS BY HONOURABLE OLUWOLE JIMI-BADA, SAN, ATTORNEY-GENERAL AND COMMISSIONER FOR JUSTICE OF OSUN STATE, ON THE POLICE RAID, ARRESTS, AND DETENTION ARISING FROM THE INCIDENT AT THE RESIDENCE OF THE SECRETARY TO THE STATE GOVERNMENT

PRESS CONFERENCE ADDRESS BY HONOURABLE OLUWOLE JIMI-BADA, SAN, ATTORNEY-GENERAL AND COMMISSIONER FOR JUSTICE OF OSUN STATE, ON THE POLICE RAID, ARRESTS, AND DETENTION ARISING FROM THE INCIDENT AT THE RESIDENCE OF THE SECRETARY TO THE STATE GOVERNMENT

Date: 30th July, 2026
Venue: Osogbo, Osun State

Gentlemen of the Press,

I address you today in my capacity as the Honourable Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of Osun State, and as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, on a matter that has generated understandable public concern, legal anxiety, and political unease in our dear State.

The matter concerns the raid reportedly carried out by officers of the Nigeria Police Force at the residence of the Secretary to the State Government of Osun State, the arrest of some persons found on the premises, and the subsequent detention of the Secretary to the State Government after he voluntarily reported at the Force Headquarters.

Let me begin by making one point absolutely clear: the Government of Osun State recognises the constitutional role of the Nigeria Police Force. We do not oppose lawful investigation. We do not support criminality. We do not shield anyone who is properly suspected of committing an offence. Nobody is above the law.

However, it must be said with equal firmness that the law is also above every institution, including the police. Law enforcement must be carried out with fairness, neutrality, restraint, and strict compliance with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

From the information available to the Government of Osun State, the Secretary to the State Government was not at home when his residence was raided. He was not arrested at the scene. He did not flee. He did not evade the police. Upon being informed that persons had been arrested at his residence, he voluntarily proceeded to the Force Headquarters to assist the process and to seek administrative bail for those arrested.

It is therefore shocking that a senior public official who voluntarily submitted himself to law enforcement authorities, not as a fugitive but as a responsible citizen, was subsequently detained.

This is a matter of serious concern. If a citizen who voluntarily goes to the police to assist an inquiry can be turned into a detainee without clear and credible grounds, then every citizen is at risk.

We have been informed that some members of the Accord Party were present at the residence in connection with the distribution of funds intended for lawful party logistics. Political parties are entitled to organise their members, arrange transportation, mobilisation, feeding, communication, and other legitimate election-related logistics, provided such activities are conducted within the law.

It is important to emphasise that the Osun State Governorship Election is scheduled for 15th August, 2026. The incident in question occurred on 29th July, 2026. No governorship election was taking place in Osun State on that date. No polling units were open. No ballot was being cast. No voter was in a voting queue. No collation was taking place.

While the law rightly prohibits voter inducement and electoral bribery, such a serious allegation must be supported by credible, specific, and admissible evidence. The mere possession or distribution of funds for party logistics should not be hastily labelled as vote-buying without proof of unlawful inducement of voters.

The distinction is important. Party logistics are not, by themselves, a crime. Political mobilisation is not, by itself, a crime. Printing campaign materials is not a crime. Holding a meeting in a private residence is not a crime. Belonging to an opposition or minority political party is not a crime.

We have also been informed that the police allegedly recorded or displayed some Permanent Voter Cards, PVCs, found with persons at the residence. The information available to us is that those PVCs belonged to the Accord Party members who were present at the residence. If a citizen is in lawful possession of his or her own PVC, that fact alone does not constitute an offence.

Furthermore, INEC has already released the voters’ register to political parties in accordance with the electoral process. A voters’ register that INEC has lawfully released can be printed or reproduced by political parties for legitimate electoral planning, mobilisation, verification, and polling-unit organisation. The possession of printed copies of the voters’ register, without more, should not be sensationalised as evidence of criminal conduct.

If the police have contrary evidence, they should disclose it in accordance with the law. They should state clearly whose PVC was found with whom. They should state whether any PVC was found in the unlawful possession of another person. They should state whether any voter was identified as having been offered money in exchange for a vote. They should state whether any written statement, video recording, marked money, or direct complaint supports the allegation of vote-buying.

The public deserves facts, not insinuations.

We have also learnt that the police may be relying on a separate allegation that one of the persons arrested at the residence was wanted in connection with an earlier offence. We are further informed that this fact is being used to suggest that the Secretary to the State Government has thereby become a suspect.

With the greatest respect, that position is not supported by law.

Criminal liability is personal. A person does not become a suspect merely because another person found on his premises is alleged to have committed an offence elsewhere at an earlier time. The law does not recognise guilt by association. It does not criminalise proximity. It does not punish a person merely because he knows, hosts, or is politically associated with someone who is later alleged to be wanted by law enforcement.

For the Secretary to the State Government to be properly treated as a suspect, there must be credible facts linking him personally to a known offence. There must be more than suspicion. There must be more than political speculation. There must be more than the fact that some persons were found in his residence when he was not even present.

If indeed one of the persons arrested was wanted by the police for a previous offence, the proper course is to deal with that person in accordance with the law. That allegation cannot automatically be transferred to the owner or occupant of the premises. It cannot be used as a blanket justification for the detention of a public official who voluntarily came forward to assist the police.

This incident raises very troubling questions:

Why was the residence of the Secretary to the State Government raided in this manner?
Why was the Secretary to the State Government detained after he voluntarily went to the Force Headquarters?
Why is an allegation of vote-buying being made in relation to an event that occurred on 29th July, 2026, when the governorship election is fixed for 15th August, 2026?
Why is the possession of voters’ register materials, already released by INEC to political parties, being presented in a manner that may mislead the public?
Why are PVCs allegedly belonging to persons present at the residence being treated as though their mere existence establishes a crime?
Why is an alleged previous offence by one person being used to cast suspicion on another person without clear legal basis?

These questions are not being asked for political drama. They are being asked because the credibility of law enforcement is essential to democracy. The police must not only be impartial; they must be seen to be impartial. They must not only enforce the law; they must do so in a manner that inspires public confidence.

At a time when Osun State is preparing for a governorship election, every action of security agencies must be measured, lawful, transparent, and non-partisan. The police must not act, or appear to act, in a manner that gives advantage to one political interest over another. The police must not be drawn into partisan contests. The police must not become an instrument of fear in the hands of any political actor.

The people of Osun State are peaceful, politically conscious, and law-abiding. They deserve an election environment free from intimidation. They deserve to make their choices without harassment. They deserve to participate in democratic activities without the fear that lawful political logistics will be criminalised.

Let me also state that the Office of the Attorney-General will not support any act of violence, electoral malpractice, voter inducement, or breach of public peace by any person or party. If any individual has committed an offence, such individual should be investigated and prosecuted in accordance with the law.

But what we will not accept is selective enforcement. We will not accept media trial. We will not accept the criminalisation of lawful political association. We will not accept the detention of citizens without clear legal justification. We will not accept a situation where allegations are shifted from one ground to another in search of justification after the fact.

The constitutional rights of every person arrested must be respected. They are entitled to be informed promptly of the reason for their arrest. They are entitled to legal representation. They are entitled to humane treatment. They are entitled to be brought before a court within the time prescribed by the Constitution if the police believe there is a case against them.

Accordingly, the Government of Osun State calls on the Inspector-General of Police to immediately review the circumstances surrounding this incident and ensure that the Nigeria Police Force is not portrayed, used, or perceived as a partisan institution in the politics of Osun State.

We call for the immediate release of the Secretary to the State Government unless there is credible evidence known to law linking him personally to a specific offence.

We call for the release of all persons arrested at the residence unless the police are prepared to charge them before a court of competent jurisdiction within the constitutionally prescribed period.

We call on the police to disclose, in clear terms, the specific offence alleged against each person arrested. The law does not permit indiscriminate suspicion. Each person’s case must be treated individually.

We call on the police to clarify the allegation regarding the PVCs reportedly recorded, including whether the PVCs belonged to the persons present or whether there is any evidence of unlawful possession.

We call on the police to clarify whether the voters’ register allegedly found was not part of materials already released by INEC to political parties for legitimate electoral purposes.

We call on INEC, civil society organisations, election observers, the Nigerian Bar Association, the National Human Rights Commission, and all lovers of democracy to pay close attention to this matter and to the general conduct of security agencies ahead of the 15th August, 2026 governorship election in Osun State.

Democracy is not protected by intimidation. Democracy is protected by law. Democracy is not strengthened when state power is used in a manner that creates fear. It is strengthened when institutions act with neutrality, professionalism, and respect for constitutional rights.

The image of a public official voluntarily walking into the Force Headquarters to seek bail for persons arrested at his residence, only to be detained, is not an image that strengthens public confidence. It is an image that worries ordinary citizens. It tells the public that cooperation with law enforcement may expose them to arbitrary detention. That is not the message a democratic society should send.

The Government of Osun State urges our people to remain calm, peaceful, and law-abiding. We urge political parties and their supporters to avoid provocation. We urge the police to act with restraint, fairness, and professionalism.

The forthcoming governorship election must be decided by the people of Osun State through their votes on 15th August, 2026. It must not be influenced by fear, raids, selective arrests, or partisan narratives.

As Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, I will continue to insist on due process, the rule of law, and the protection of constitutional rights. That is my duty. That is my oath. That is what justice demands.

Thank you.

Honourable Oluwole Jimi-Bada, SAN
Honourable Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice,
Osun State.