Adeleke Unveils ₦500m Fund, Scholarships For Osun Electoral

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has announced a ₦500 million Election Violence Victims Endowment Fund to provide relief and support to families affected by electoral violence during the build-up to the August 15, 2026 governorship election.

Adeleke made the announcement on Wednesday while addressing members of the Osun labour movement at a celebration rally shortly after receiving his Certificate of Return from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The governor also announced automatic scholarships up to university level for the children and dependants of people who lost their lives during the electoral process.

According to him, the scholarships will be provided by the Adeleke family through the Springtime Development Foundation.

Adeleke said the state government would establish a Verification and Relief Committee, chaired by the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Adewale Egbedun, to identify and assess victims and oversee the equitable distribution of relief.

He stressed that the fund would be strictly humanitarian and not politically motivated.

“No eligible victim will be discriminated against on the basis of political affiliation, religion, ethnicity, gender or social status,” Adeleke said.

The governor said citizens were injured, properties destroyed and livelihoods disrupted during the electoral process, adding that the loss of lives remained the most painful consequence.

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Adeleke later visited the Ataoja Palace in Osogbo, where he commiserated with families of victims of the violence.

He remembered victims including Ezekiel Olapade, Aderogba Ajayi, Remi Abass and Kolade Eluyera, assuring their families that their losses would not be forgotten.

Meanwhile, Adeleke dedicated his Certificate of Return to the people of Osun State, saying it represented their confidence in democracy.

He also said he had forgiven those who might have offended him during the election campaign and harboured no grudge against his political opponents.

The governor commended INEC for what he described as a professional conduct of the election and praised security agencies for their efforts.

INEC declared Adeleke the winner of the August 15 election after he secured 511,067 votes against the 444,815 votes scored by the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Oyebamiji.

African Democratic Congress (ADC) candidate Najeem Salaam polled 17,180 votes.

Adeleke won in 19 of the state’s 30 local government areas, while Oyebamiji secured victory in 11, giving the incumbent governor a second term in office.