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African Action Congress presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore has alleged that policemen deployed for the Osun State governorship election fired tear gas at him and members of his team while they were travelling to Osogbo on Wednesday.
Sowore made the allegation in a post on X, saying the incident occurred as they approached Osogbo ahead of Saturday’s governorship election.
He said the team initially had a peaceful interaction with the officers before the alleged incident occurred.
“Despite our having a respectful and peaceful conversation with them, they secretly fired tear gas at us as we continued on our journey,” Sowore wrote.
According to him, the alleged action was intended to intimidate him and his team, but did not prevent them from reaching Osogbo.
“But their intimidation failed. We pushed through, arrived in Oshogbo, and triumphed,” he said.
Sowore condemned the alleged conduct of the officers, saying the police should protect citizens and uphold the integrity of the electoral process rather than target political actors.
“The police should be protecting citizens and safeguarding the democratic process, not attacking peaceful political actors,” he said.
He concluded by condemning the police over the alleged incident.
“Shame on the Nigeria Police Force!” Sowore wrote.
The allegation comes three days before the Osun governorship election scheduled for Saturday, August 15.
Security agencies have deployed personnel across the state as part of measures to maintain law and order before, during and after the election.
Sowore did not identify the officers allegedly involved in the incident or provide further details about what led to their interaction with his team.
The Nigeria Police Force had not publicly responded to the allegation as of the time of filing this report.
Men and women of the Nigeria Police Force @PoliceNG deployed to monitor the Osun Stage gubernatorial election somehow found time to attack us on our way into Oshogbo today.
Despite our having a respectful and peaceful conversation with them, they secretly fired tear gas at us as… pic.twitter.com/QGY9yDUNy6
— Omoyele Sowore (@sowore) August 12, 2026
