Osun 2026: Amnesty International Targets Fadahunsi, Says ‘We’ll Use Him as an Example’

Amnesty International has vowed to make Senator Francis Fadahunsi a test case in its campaign against political incitement and inflammatory statements ahead of Saturday’s Osun State governorship election.

The organisation’s Country Director in Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, said on Thursday that Amnesty International would pursue accountability over alleged comments attributed to the senator and ensure that the matter attracts international attention.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, Sanusi reacted to a viral video allegedly showing Fadahunsi, who represents Osun East Senatorial District, making remarks interpreted as a call for violence against supporters of the Accord Party.

“We are going to use him as an example,” Sanusi declared, arguing that politicians must no longer be allowed to make statements capable of triggering violence without facing consequences.

He described the alleged statement as particularly serious because, according to him, the senator was captured on record making words interpreted as an instruction to “kill them wherever you find them.”

Fadahunsi, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has come under intense criticism following the circulation of the video.

The Osun State Police Command had summoned the senator over the controversy and questioned him for about two hours on Wednesday.

Sanusi said Amnesty International views advocacy of hatred and incitement to violence as serious matters that demand an urgent response from the authorities.

He maintained that the organisation would not relent in its efforts to challenge impunity among political actors, particularly during elections when inflammatory rhetoric can escalate tensions.

“I believe that that person does not deserve any peace again, because advocacy of hatred is a crime under international law as well as Nigerian laws,” Sanusi said.

Amnesty International Nigeria had earlier called on authorities to hold Fadahunsi accountable, accusing him of allegedly instructing supporters to kill members of the Accord Party during a campaign ahead of the August 15 election.

The organisation warned that statements advocating violence, whether delivered publicly, online or during political campaigns, could endanger lives and threaten the peaceful conduct of the electoral process.

The controversy has further heightened concerns surrounding Saturday’s election, with stakeholders warning against hate speech, intimidation, vote-buying and other activities capable of undermining a peaceful democratic exercise.

For Amnesty International, the Fadahunsi case could become a defining warning to politicians: electoral ambition, the organisation insists, must never become a licence for incitement or violence.