Families of those killed and injured in the recent violence in Ikire, Osun State, have cautioned the state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) against politicising the alleged killing of their relatives by police operatives.
The families said the incident had nothing to do with politics, describing it instead as an alleged case of extrajudicial killing involving police officers led by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in Ikire.
Reacting to allegations and accusations reportedly made by the Ikire/Osun APC, the families condemned any attempt to dilute the seriousness of the incident by introducing political considerations.
They maintained that the matter was neither about the APC nor the Accord Party, but about what they described as the alleged unlawful killing of innocent citizens and family breadwinners.
“We know those who killed our men. We know the policemen who shot and killed for no reason,” the families said in a statement signed by Mr. Teslim Shittu on their behalf.
“It was not a political issue because there was no political event at the park at the time of the cold-blooded murder. The park was not playing host to APC or Accord before the DPO led his men of six to launch sporadic gun attacks on the park.”
The families also rejected attempts to link Senator Akogun Lere Oyewumi to the incident, describing such claims as a diversion intended to shield the police officers accused of involvement in the killings.
“Attempt to drag Senator Akogun Lere Oyewumi into the matter is a diversionary tactic to cover up the criminal conduct of the fingered policemen,” they said.
“We reject this orchestrated cover-up, and we reiterate that the senator was the helper who calmed down the near mob reaction after the killings.”
The families further alleged that Oyewumi intervened to prevent the situation from escalating into wider retaliatory violence within the community.
The APC and the Osun State Police Command had yet to officially respond to the allegations as of the time of filing this report.
The victims’ families urged senior police authorities and members of the public to disregard what they described as “fake news” concerning the senator’s alleged involvement, claiming that the allegations were part of an attempt to shield the policemen they identified as the alleged perpetrators.
“We reject attempts by Osun APC to silence us through monetary inducement. We abhor blood money. We will not sacrifice justice on the altar of evil money. Those who killed innocent citizens must face the full weight of the law,” the families said.
They reiterated their demand for justice, insisting that no amount of propaganda could erase what they described as evidence implicating those responsible for the killings.
Coroner Inquest, Panel of Inquiry
The families’ demand comes as Osun State Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, on Saturday issued an executive order establishing a Coroner Inquest/Panel of Inquiry into the killings, shootings, injuries and violence reported at Naira and Kobo Junction, Motor Park/Garage Area, Ikire, in Irewole Local Government Area, on August 24, 2026.
The executive order, which takes effect on August 31, empowers the panel to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident, determine the identities and number of victims, establish the immediate and remote causes of the violence, and determine whether criminal responsibility is connected to the deaths.
According to a statement by the governor’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, Magistrate Ayokunle Shiyanbola will chair the Coroner Inquest/Panel, with Mr. Abiodun Badiora serving as Secretary.
Other members are AIG Aderanti Kayode (retd.); Mr. Dele Akintayo, representing the Nigerian Bar Association; Wale Balogun, representing civil society organisations; a community representative from Ikire; and Babatunde Afolabi, who will serve as the medical and forensic representative.
The panel is expected to commence its sitting within seven days of inauguration and submit its final report to the Osun State Government within 30 days of its first sitting, subject to any extension approved by the governor.
