Present Your Evidence! Police Fire Back Over Viral Ekiti Election Photo

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has called on individuals and election observers alleging electoral malpractice during the recently concluded Ekiti State governorship election to provide verifiable evidence to support their claims.

According to official statements from the police, the appeal followed widespread reactions to a photograph circulating on social media that purportedly linked police officers to vote-buying activities at a polling unit in Ikere Local Government Area.

The image, shared online by journalist Oseni Rufai, showed two female police officers positioned near an open polling booth, with claims suggesting they were facilitating vote buying. The post quickly generated public debate and criticism directed at the police.

Responding to the allegations, the Force’s New Media Officer, Aliyu Giwa, emphasized that accusations of electoral misconduct are serious matters that should be backed by credible evidence rather than assumptions based solely on a photograph. He maintained that the officers captured in the image were performing their constitutional responsibility of maintaining security and order at the polling unit.

Giwa stated that any evidence indicating the involvement of police personnel in electoral malpractice should be formally submitted for investigation, stressing that democratic processes are strengthened by facts and weakened by speculation.

The development comes after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared incumbent Governor Biodun Oyebanji of the All Progressives Congress (APC) the winner of the election. Oyebanji secured 319,224 votes to defeat his closest challengers, Olumayokun Oluyede of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Dare Bejide of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), across the state’s 16 local government areas.

While opposition parties raised concerns over alleged vote-buying activities in some parts of the state during the election, the Nigeria Police Force, President Bola Tinubu, and the APC have maintained that the poll was conducted peacefully. Police authorities reiterated that officers were strategically deployed across polling units and other key locations to ensure public safety, security, and the smooth conduct of the electoral process.