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The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in Osun State has dismissed claims that it is registering underage voters ahead of the August 8, 2026 governorship election, describing the allegations as “false, unfounded and deliberately misleading.”
The Osun State Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, Dr Mutiu Agboke, made this clarification following viral social media reports suggesting that secondary school students were mobilised to INEC offices for voter registration.
Agboke explained that no underage person was registered at any INEC office in the state, stressing that the incident in question involved an attempted breach which was firmly resisted by electoral officials.
He spoke on Thursday in an exclusive interview on Eagle 102. 5 FM, Ilese Ijebu, monitored by our correspondent in Abeokuta.
According to the REC, the controversy stemmed from an incident that occurred at the INEC office in Ede North Local Government Area, where a busload of uniformed secondary school students arrived for registration.
He said, “Let me say clearly that there is nothing, absolutely nothing like underage registration in Osun State. That report is unfounded, spurious and lacks any iota of truth.
Agboke explained that a busload of students arrived at the Ede North INEC office last Friday and on sighting them, the officer on duty immediately resisted the attempt by those who brought them.
“There were heated arguments, but eventually, nobody was allowed to register,” he stated.
Agboke revealed that while the confrontation was ongoing, an onlooker took photographs of the students and circulated them online, sparking public outrage and false claims that underage registration was taking place.
“Somebody from a close range took pictures and went online to spread the narrative that INEC was registering underage students. That is completely false,” he added.
The INEC boss disclosed that he led a delegation to the secondary school involved to investigate the matter and confronted the school authorities.
“We deliberately went to the school to find out how those students were mobilised. The principal was shocked and apologised profusely. He said he did not authorise it and had already written complaints to the Ministry of Education and other authorities for investigation,” Agboke disclosed.
He added that the school management assured INEC that steps were being taken to identify those responsible for mobilising the students.
“I warned him that if such an incident happens again, I will not hesitate to involve law enforcement agencies. The principal accepted responsibility and assured us that measures are being taken,” he said.
Agboke also responded to the criticisms that INEC should have arrested the individuals who transported the students, insisting that INEC is not a law enforcement agency and acted within its legal mandate.
“INEC is not a police organisation. Our duty is to prevent illegal registration, and we did exactly that. No underage person entered our register. That is what matters,” he said.
INEC debunks underage voters registration in Osun, says allegations is false, misleading
