Osun election: Sowore accuses police of teargassing him

Omoyele Sowore has accused officers of the Nigeria Police Force of firing tear gas at him and his supporters while they were travelling to Osogbo, Osun State, ahead of the governorship election.

Sowore made the allegation in a post shared on his verified X account on Wednesday.

He claimed that the officers attacked his group despite what he described as a peaceful conversation with them before they continued their journey.

“Despite our having a respectful and peaceful conversation with them, they secretly fired tear gas at us as we continued on our journey,” Sowore wrote.

Sowore said the alleged action by the police did not stop them from reaching the state capital.

“But their intimidation failed. We pushed through, arrived in Oshogbo and triumphed,” he stated.

He criticised the conduct of the police, saying officers deployed for the election should protect citizens and the electoral process.

“The police should be protecting citizens and safeguarding the democratic process, not attacking peaceful political actors,” Sowore wrote.