By Ismail Azeez
The Osun State Police Command has confirmed the arrest of six suspects during a raid at the residence of the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Teslim Igbalaye, in Osogbo, the state capital, on Wednesday.
Confirming the development in a telephone interview, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abiodun Ojelabi, stated that the operation was executed based on credible intelligence.
He disclosed that following preliminary screening, four of the suspects were found not to be involved in any criminal activity and would be released.
The Police spokesperson, however, did not reveal the nature of the exhibits recovered or the specific offenses under investigation.
“It is true that, based on intelligence, the residence of the SSG was raided by police operatives, and six persons were arrested with exhibits. Four of them have been screened, and we discovered that they were not involved. They will be released. That is all I can say for now,” Ojelabi said.
Meanwhile, the Osun State Government has raised the alarm over what it termed a systematic invasion and targeting of top government officials’ homes by the Osun State Police Command without valid search warrants, citing the raid on the SSG’s residence as the latest incident.
In a statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, the government revealed that five other commissioners reported that their residences were being surveilled or raided, despite no illegal activities taking place on their premises.
“Following several raids and arrests, reports at the disposal of the government indicate that several members of the Accord party are languishing in CID cells at the State Command without being granted bail.”
“These raids on the SSG and our commissioners constitute an aggravated assault on the government and people of Osun State. This campaign of repression poses a grave danger to democracy. It is a reprehensible and unprofessional act by the police in support of the state APC.”
“By openly launching attacks on Osun government officials, the state police command has again confirmed its partiality and partisanship, acting as a direct tool in the hands of Osun APC. This is a law enforcement agency becoming lawless and acting against the spirit and letter of the Constitution.”
“These grave violations of the Constitution and the fundamental rights of the government and people of Osun State come as the National Chairman of INEC is meeting with stakeholders. The police have become a major threat to the conduct of a free and fair election in Osun State.”
“We again call the attention of our traditional rulers, the Police Service Commission, the Inspector-General of Police, the National Security Adviser, and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to this escalation of targeted violence against top government officials and Accord members in Osun State. This must be stopped before it escalates into a general breakdown of law and order.”
“Our Governor has consistently urged the public to remain calm and not take the law into their own hands. However, the situation is reaching a boiling point. We must save our democracy from these lawless elements within the Nigeria Police Force,” the statement read.