The Osun State Government has asked the State High Court to compel the police to investigate Senator Francis Fadahunsi over alleged threats against supporters of the Accord Party ahead of Saturday’s governorship election.

The application, marked HOS/M.157/26, was filed by the Attorney General of Osun State, with the Inspector-General of Police and the Commissioner of Police, Osun State Command, listed as respondents.

The government said the legal action followed a video circulating on social media in which Fadahunsi, who represents Osun East Senatorial District, was allegedly captured addressing a political gathering in front of the Owa Obokun’s Palace in Ilesha on August 11.

The senator was alleged to have made statements interpreted as calls for violence against members of the Accord Party and supporters of Governor Ademola Adeleke.

The court was told that a transcript and translation of the speech showed Fadahunsi allegedly directing his supporters to attack Accord members wherever they encountered them and threatening their families.

He was also alleged to have instructed his supporters to chase Accord members out of hotels where they were found and made derogatory comments about the party’s yellow caps.

The Attorney General is seeking an order compelling the police to investigate the video and determine whether the alleged statements constitute criminal offences under applicable laws.

He is also seeking an order directing the police to preserve, authenticate and conduct a forensic examination of the complete video to determine whether it has been altered or edited.

Other reliefs sought include an order compelling the police to take preventive measures to protect Accord candidates, members and voters from intimidation or harassment before, during and after the election.

The government also wants the police to ensure that no individual or group acting on the alleged statements intimidates, threatens, attacks, harasses or unlawfully prevents Accord members, supporters or registered voters from exercising their rights.

It further asked the court to direct the police to submit a comprehensive report of steps taken in compliance with the orders within 48 hours or within a period determined by the court.

In a supporting affidavit, Nurudeen Kareem, Special Adviser to Governor Adeleke on Legal Matters, said Accord members had expressed “reasonable and legitimate concerns regarding their safety and security” ahead of the election.

The government argued that the police have a statutory responsibility under the Police Act 2020 and the 1999 Constitution to prevent crime and maintain public order.

It maintained that waiting for violence to occur before investigating an alleged public threat would undermine the preventive role of law enforcement.

“The Applicant believes that waiting until actual violence, deaths, or injuries occur before investigating an alleged public instruction to kill political opponents would amount to a dereliction of duty,” the government said.

The Attorney General clarified that the suit was not asking the court to determine Fadahunsi’s criminal guilt, stressing that such a determination would require a proper criminal trial.

Rather, the government said it was seeking to compel the police to carry out their statutory responsibilities and take appropriate preventive measures.

With the election scheduled for Saturday, the government said “time is of the absolute essence”, warning that failure to act on the alleged threats could expose residents to “irreparable harm, loss of life, and widespread civil unrest.”

Meanwhile, separate criminal complaints have also been filed against Fadahunsi and an APC House of Representatives candidate in the state, Damilare Eniade, over alleged utterances described as seditious and contrary to Sections 50 and 51 of the Osun State Criminal Code.