As Osun State gears up for its local government election on the 22nd of February, tensions are mounting over the credibility of the process.
The Osun Masterminds (TOM), a civic advocacy group, has taken a strong stance against Hashim Abioye, Chairman of the Osun State Independent Electoral Commission (OSSIEC), questioning his suitability to oversee the polls.
During the January 2025 State of the State Address, TOM’s spokesperson, Ayo Ologun, did not mince words in his criticism of Abioye.
According to Ologun, OSSIEC under Abioye lacks the integrity to conduct a free and fair election. He pointed to Abioye’s past affiliations, noting that he was formerly a legal team member of the Osun Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), an aspirant for the House of Representatives under the same party, and a government appointee before assuming his current role.
“We all know Hashim Abioye was part of the legal team of the PDP and contested for House of Representatives under the PDP. He was an appointee of the PDP before he decided to contest and then resigned to become the Chairman of OSSIEC,” Ologun asserted.
He further argued that the credibility of Nigerian elections is often compromised due to the questionable backgrounds of those appointed to oversee them.
“You cannot be partisan and expect to deliver a free and fair election. It will never happen,” he declared. While acknowledging OSSIEC’s efforts in terms of election orientation, publicity, and stakeholder engagement, he maintained that a flawed foundation cannot produce a credible outcome.
“Local government elections in Osun State are long overdue. Whatever shenanigans are going on within the APC and PDP are their business, but for us, the appointment of Hashim Abioye is illegal. It remains our stance and is not going to change,” Ologun added.
Reacting to the allegations, Hashim Abioye dismissed TOM’s claims of illegality and bias, insisting that his past political affiliations do not amount to a crime.
“An illegality is a criminality. What crime has been committed by being a member of a political party in the past and later resigning one’s membership?” he asked.
Taking a direct jab at TOM, he remarked, “I learned their Executive Director is a Professor I don’t know whether it is in Law, but I know he is a lawyer in the fold of the acclaimed ‘Osun Masterminds’… So sad if a lawyer does not know what an illegality connotes.”
Abioye then turned the tables on TOM, questioning their silence over past electoral irregularities in the state. He accused the group of looking the other way when, under the previous administration, OSSIEC allegedly squandered ₦2 billion on a controversial YES/NO election in 2022.
“The ‘know-it-all Osun Masterminds’ were sleeping and nowhere to be found when OSSIEC, under the past administration, brazenly defiled the law establishing OSSIEC itself, deliberately violated the Electoral Act and the Constitution an obvious criminality,” he alleged.
According to Abioye, TOM also failed to raise concerns when the immediate past OSSIEC Chairman and other board members actively participated in APC campaign activities while still holding office.
He further accused TOM of ignoring the present OSSIEC’s strides in ensuring transparency and best practices in the electoral process.
“The Osun Masterminds found no cause to appreciate OSSIEC under the present leadership. They suppressed the fact of the administrative and managerial best practices we have brought to bear on the Commission. They feigned ignorance of our activities, which reasonable individuals, bodies, and organizations have applauded,” he stated.
Abioye suggested that TOM’s criticism was politically motivated, urging them to come clean about their affiliations.
“Rather, they have joined in the sentiments and propaganda of some people singing bad about Hashim Abioye. The Masterminds should remove their veil and tell us who they actually are and what they stand for,” he challenged.
Taking a final swing, Abioye called out Professor Wasiu Oyedokun-Alli, a key TOM figure, for alleged double standards.
“Nobody would crucify them for coming out boldly to publicly associate with their political party. What moral stand and stance does Prof. Wasiu Oyedokun-Alli, especially, have to badmouth Hashim Abioye when he himself had been an aspirant several times on the platform of the APC?”
With just weeks to the election, the war of words between TOM and Abioye has injected fresh controversy into Osun’s political landscape.
As both sides dig in their heels, the ultimate question remains: will the February 22 local government election be free, fair, and credible, or is the stage set for another political storm?