Tensions have escalated in Osun State ahead of Saturday’s governorship election following allegations by the All Progressives Congress (APC) that Dele Ayegbo, nephew of the party’s campaign Director-General, Wole Oke, has been gunned down.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Osun APC spokesperson Kola Olabisi revealed that Ayegbo was killed on Wednesday night near his residence in the Idofin area of Esa-Oke, located in the Obokun Local Government Area.

According to the party, suspected hoodlums operating from a vehicle carried out the attack.

“The Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned the killing of the party’s governorship campaign Director-General, Wole Oke’s nephew, Dele Ayegbo, in Esa-Oke, Obokun Local Government Council Area of the state on Wednesday night by the hit squad of the Accord Party who have been terrorising the members and supporters of the opposition APC across the state,” the statement reads.

“Information has it that Ayegbo was gunned down at the road junction close to his house at the Idofin quarters area of the ancient town by the Accord Party hoodlums who were riding in a car.”

Olabisi stated that two party members were targeted in the shooting. While Ayegbo died instantly at the scene, the second victim sustained gunshot wounds and was rushed to an undisclosed local hospital for medical treatment.

Describing the violence as intolerable, Olabisi demanded immediate action from law enforcement agencies.

“The killing of the nephew of our campaign Director-general in Esa-Oke is one death too many which must be urgently unravelled by the police in the interest of fairness and justice,” he said.

Decrying the rising violence, Olabisi claimed that more than 30 APC members have been killed by political thugs, with Ijesaland bearing the heaviest toll—accounting for 17 of those fatalities since 2022.

“A common observation has been that whenever our members were killed, the self-acclaimed chief security officer of the state would not condemn the killing which gives credence to his approval of the rampant extra-judicial killings of our members and supporters in the state,” Olabisi further claimed.

He urged the Osun State Police Command to intervene swiftly before voters go to the polls on August 15, alleging that the attack was designed to intimidate the electorate.

“The purpose is to scare away our members and supporters from exercising their civic responsibility on Saturday,” he said.

Efforts to reach the Osun State Police Command for official confirmation were unsuccessful, as spokesperson Abiodun Ojelabi had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.

The tragic incident comes during a period of intense rivalry and mutual recriminations between the APC and supporters of the incumbent governor, who is running for a second term under the Accord banner.