Police send armed men to Osun in the Adeleke vs. Oyetola dispute.

There will be tension throughout the state on Friday as the Appeal Court panel that heard the case renders its decision in Abuja.

Our reporter wandered the streets of Osogbo metropolis and noticed the presence of armed police officers at the well-known Olaiya Junction, Old Garage, Okefia, and Lameco Junction.

Police officers and members of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps were seen driving about Osogbo in patrol cars that were sounding their sirens.

The Independent National Electoral Commission re-elected PDP senator Ademola Adeleke, but the APC candidate at the election, Adegboyega Oyetola, had challenged the result before a tribunal panel led by Justice Tertsea Kume, which in a majority decision on January 27 declared Oyetola the winner of the election and threw out Adeleke's victory.
However in a minority decision, Justice B. Ogbuli dismissed Oyetola's appeal and ruled that Adeleke had been legitimately elected governor after receiving the majority of valid votes.

However, the Appeal Court told the parties that it would issue the ruling on Friday after hearing the appeals made by the INEC, Adeleke, and PDP against the tribunal's decision.

In addition to the police officers stationed across the state capital, the Osun State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps said that it had sent troops to key locations in the state ahead of the verdict.

Kehinde Adeleke, the command's interim public relations officer, said in a statement that "there is a strategic deployment of people around vital infrastructure in the state ahead of Friday's Appeal Court judgment on the dispute between Governor Ademola Adeleke and Alh. Adegboyega Oyetola.

"An armed unit of the Corps will be patrolling the area in preparation for emergency response. The Command is prepared to quell any unrest brought on by potential demonstrations from resentful groups.