He claimed that the police, under the watch of the state police commissioner, have turned into the “armed wing” of Governor Biodun Oyebanji’s political camp.
Engineer Kayode Ojo, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State, has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, accusing the state police command of brutality, illegal arrests, and persecution of his loyalists over his governorship ambition.
In a petition obtained by SaharaReporters on Tuesday dated January 9, 2026, and signed by his lawyers, A.N. Mairiga & Co., Ojo alleged that the Ekiti State Police Command has been weaponised against him and his supporters since his “unjust disqualification” from the APC governorship primary.
He claimed that the police, under the watch of the state police commissioner, have turned into the “armed wing” of Governor Biodun Oyebanji’s political camp.
The petition accused CSP Marcus Ogundola, Commander of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), and his deputy, Officer Ogidan Tola, as spearheading raids and arrests of Ojo’s supporters. According to the petition, families have been harassed, homes raided, and APC members loyal to Ojo detained on “phantom charges” using Form K remand orders.
The petition said, "It is with a heavy heart that we inform you that the Ekiti State Police Command has effectively been converted into the armed wing of the State Governor's political camp. The police, sworn to protect citizens, have turned their guns and bayonets against the very people they are paid to serve.
“It is the complaint of our client that his known supporters and loyalist across the State has been subjected to systemic persecution and faced with existential threat from the State actors that are meant to protect their constitutional rights.
"At the center of this tyranny is one CSP Marcus Ogundola, the Commander of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), and his second-in-command, Officer Ogidan Tola. Under the direct supervision and complicit silence of the Ekiti State Commissioner of Police, these officers have discarded their professional code of conduct to become political thugs in uniform.”
"They operate with impunity, conducting Gestapo-style raids, harassing innocent families, and hunting down anyone perceived as loyal to Engr. Kayode Ojo. They have demonstrated a brazen disregard for the sanctity of human rights, treating political dissent as a capital offense," it stated.
The lawyers alleged that several APC members loyal to Ojo have been arrested, detained and arraigned on what they described as “trumped-up and phantom charges,” with the police allegedly using holding charges and “Form K” to remand them in correctional centres without proper investigation.
"As we write this, innocent men, fathers, husbands, and loyal party members are languishing in custody, their only crime being their loyalty to our client,” the petition stated.
"These individuals have been subjected to uncivilized policing, stripped of their dignity, and dragged before courts on trumped-up, phantom charges. In a calculated mockery of the judicial process, the police are utilizing "Form K" and "holding charges" to dump these men in correctional centers without a shred of investigation, purely to punish them and break their spirits. This is not prosecution; this is persecution.”
"In view of the above revelation, it is our client's firm instruction that the Inspector General of police should come to their aid, by first directing the withdrawal of the trump charges against them and release them from the custody pending proper investigation by unbiased and neutral investigation unit of the Nigerian police, preferably in Abuja so that all parties will be given fair hearing and the outcome thereof uncompromised," it said.
Among those listed as victims are Bayo Aderiye (Ojuigo), Akogun Abayomi Olumide (Lustay), Mrs. Toyin Abeleje, Taiwo Tabiyi, Taiwo Otulape, Bayo Itakorode, Oluwafemi Ayekooto, Olugbenga Kayejo, and Omoleye Olajide, spread across Ado-Ekiti, Amure, Igede, Otun, Ikere, and Ifaki.
The controversy deepened with the arrest of Akogun Abayomi Olumide, popularly known as Lustay, a former chairman of the Ekiti State Microcredit and Enterprise Development Agency.
Olumide, once an ally of Governor Oyebanji, was sacked in August 2025 for alleged “gross misconduct.” He later accused the government of victimising him for supporting Ojo.
On January 1, 2026, Olumide was arrested by RRS operatives and accused of conspiracy to commit robbery, attempted murder, and unlawful possession of weapons.
He denied all allegations, insisting his arrest was politically motivated. Supporters claim he was held incommunicado, denied access to family and lawyers, and pressured to renounce his loyalty to Ojo.
Similarly, transport union figure Bayo Aderiye (Ojuigo) was arrested in May 2025 and accused of armed robbery and unlawful possession of a Toyota Hilux with multiple registration numbers. His supporters insist the charges are fabricated to silence dissent.
Ojo’s petition also accused the judiciary of complicity, alleging that magistrates repeatedly issue Form K remand orders to detain his supporters without substantive charges. He described the situation as a “national embarrassment,” warning that Ekiti State risks sliding into repression and lawlessness.
The petition demanded the immediate release of detained supporters, withdrawal of charges, and transfer of investigations to Abuja for neutrality. Ojo urged senior lawyers, civil society organisations, traditional rulers, and the international community to intervene.
In a separate statement titled “Sustained Persecution of Engineer Kayode Ojo’s Supporters in Ekiti State,” Ojo alleged that under the administration of Governor Oyebanji, APC members supporting his governorship ambition have been treated as enemies within the same ruling party.
Ojo accused the state government and security agencies of arrests, attempted arrests, intimidation, surveillance, unlawful detention and economic victimisation of his supporters, insisting that their only offence was lawful political association within the APC.
He further alleged that over 20 APC members are currently languishing in the Ado-Ekiti correctional centre through the use of Form K, allegedly on the directive of Governor Oyebanji.
Beyond arrests and detention, Ojo alleged systematic economic victimisation of his supporters, claiming that several former political office holders across the state were denied their lawful severance allowances solely because of their perceived loyalty to him.
He described the situation as a “national embarrassment” and called for urgent intervention by prominent Ekiti indigenes, senior lawyers, elder statesmen, civil society organisations, traditional rulers and the international community.
Ojo demanded the immediate release of all detained supporters, an independent investigation into the alleged abuses and accountability for all those found responsible.
“Ekiti State must not be allowed to descend into repression, fear and lawlessness,” Ojo warned, adding that “political ambition must never be pursued at the expense of human rights, internal party democracy and the rule of law.”