The Osun State All Progressives Congress (APC) Governorship Campaign Council has accused the administration of Governor Ademola Adeleke of engaging in vote-buying ahead of the August 15 governorship election, alleging that public funds are being used to induce voters.
The allegation was contained in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Head of the Media and Publicity Committee of the Osun APC Governorship Campaign Council, Oluremi Omowaiye.
According to the campaign council, the state government has allegedly commenced a widespread exercise requiring residents and workers to submit their bank account details to receive ₦20,000, describing the payments as political inducements aimed at influencing voters before the election.
The council claimed that some workers and residents had already received the payments, while alleging that some members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), who ordinarily receive a monthly state stipend of ₦5,000, had also been credited with ₦20,000 at intervals of 10 days.
The APC campaign further alleged that the payments were being made despite the state government’s failure to remit workers’ contributory pension and cooperative deductions for the past two years.
It also accused the administration of neglecting pensioners, claiming that although the 2025 state budget earmarked ₦6 billion for gratuity payments, the funds were not disbursed.
The council alleged that the Adeleke administration resorted to distributing public funds after realising its electoral support had weakened, adding that the payments were allegedly being made through official government accounts.
According to the APC campaign, the alleged inducements would not sway voters, arguing that a government with a strong record of performance would not need to offer financial incentives to secure re-election.
The council further urged residents to remain vigilant, alleging that some vulnerable beneficiaries were required to swear oaths of political allegiance before receiving the ₦20,000 payments.
It also accused the administration of exploiting prevailing economic hardship for political gain, while claiming that key sectors, including education, healthcare, infrastructure and agriculture, had witnessed little progress despite the state receiving about ₦1 trillion in federal allocations during Adeleke’s tenure.
Describing vote-buying as a serious electoral offence, the APC campaign council called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to investigate the allegations.
The council also demanded a comprehensive audit of the state government’s accounts and urged the relevant authorities to prosecute anyone found culpable.
“Osun treasury belongs to the people, not to a desperate re-election campaign,” the statement added.
The Osun State Government had not responded to the allegations as of the time of filing this report.
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