Wale Igbintade
Amnesty International Nigeria has called for an urgent investigation into alleged inflammatory remarks attributed to Senator Francis Fadahunsi ahead of the Osun State governorship election.
The organisation made the call yesterday in a post on its X handle, saying the allegations of incitement to violence required prompt intervention by the relevant authorities.
Amnesty International urged the authorities to conduct a “prompt, impartial and thorough investigation” into the reported remarks and ensure accountability should evidence establish that a criminal offence had been committed.
“Political differences must never become a justification for violence,” the organisation said.
It also urged members of the public to support its petition calling on the authorities to investigate the matter and take appropriate action.
The call came as residents of Osun State voted in yesterday’s governorship election amid heightened scrutiny of the conduct of political actors and concerns over the need to maintain peace throughout the electoral process.
The international human rights organisation had last Thursday announced plans to intensify its campaign against politicians accused of making inflammatory statements capable of triggering electoral violence, with Fadahunsi’s case emerging as a major focus of the campaign.
Amnesty International Nigeria’s Country Director, Isa Sanusi, said the organisation would use the controversy surrounding the viral video involving the Osun East senator to underscore the need to hold political figures accountable for statements capable of inciting violence.
Fadahunsi, who represents Osun East Senatorial District in the National Assembly, has been at the centre of controversy over a video circulating online in which he was allegedly heard urging his supporters to “kill” members of the Accord Party ahead of yesterday’s governorship election.
The senator has, however, denied advocating physical violence, insisting that his remarks were taken out of context after the video was edited.
He maintained that his reference to “killing” the Accord Party was figurative and political, meaning that voters should overwhelmingly defeat the party at the polls rather than physically attack its members.
Speaking during a television interview, Sanusi condemned the remarks attributed to the senator and warned that Amnesty International would pursue accountability for politicians whose rhetoric could encourage electoral violence.
“We are going to use him as an example because this is the first time. We had so many other terrible politicians say terrible things ahead of elections, but this one is exceptional,” Sanusi said.
He argued that an alleged instruction to “kill them wherever you find them” represented an unacceptable form of political rhetoric, stressing that advocacy of hatred and incitement to violence were prohibited under Nigerian and international law.
Sanusi said Amnesty International would not restrict its campaign to Nigeria, adding that the organisation would use its international network to draw attention to politicians it considered promoters of electoral violence.
“We will do an international name-and-shame of those advocating for electoral violence.
Amnesty International has branches in 150 countries. We will ensure they are named and shamed in those countries and alert their governments to how dangerous these people are,” he said.
According to Sanusi, stronger accountability for politicians who make inflammatory statements is necessary to deter election-related violence and establish a higher standard of political conduct ahead of the 2027 general election.