Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
The ruling Accord Party in Osun State has accused the factional National President of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, Musiliu Akinsanya, popularly known as MC Oluomo, and some elements within the state chapter of the All Progressives Congress of plotting a fresh violent takeover of motor parks across the state, warning that the development could plunge Osun back into the cycle of violence that has already claimed lives.
In a statement issued on Sunday, September 20, 2026, and signed by the state chairman of the Accord Party, Pastor Victor Akande, the party said it had received what it described as credible reports from various motor parks indicating plans to foment violence across the state. The party specifically accused MC Oluomo of being the mastermind of the plot, allegedly acting through his surrogate, Kazeem Oyewale, popularly known as Asiri Eniba, and certain disgruntled elements within the state APC. "The development was allegedly intended to encourage Asiri Eniba to embark on violent activities across motor parks and frustrate the state government's plans to establish a Park Management System," the statement said.
At the heart of the dispute is the contentious leadership of the NURTW in Osun State. The Accord Party alleged that MC Oluomo had illegally issued a new certificate of leadership to Asiri Eniba at a time when the tenure of the incumbent executive, led by Nurudeen Alowonle, had not yet elapsed. The party said this was part of a broader strategy to provoke a confrontation and create a pretext for violence. The allegations come amid a renewed leadership dispute within the Osun NURTW, with Asiri Eniba announcing his return to the union's headquarters in Osogbo on Saturday, despite the state government's earlier directive for warring factions to vacate motor parks.
The crisis that precipitated the current standoff began in July 2026, when violent clashes erupted between rival NURTW factions in Osogbo, prompting Governor Ademola Adeleke to suspend all NURTW activities across motor parks in the state. The state government said the suspension was necessary to restore order and strengthen public security after the clashes, which saw gunshots fired at motor parks and left the state on edge. The national leadership of the NURTW, under MC Oluomo, rejected the suspension, arguing that no state governor had the power to suspend the union's activities. The union subsequently inaugurated a seven-member caretaker committee to oversee its affairs in Osun, a move the state government dismissed as illegal.
The crisis escalated further on September 13, 2026, when Olalekan Oyeyemi, a chieftain of the Accord Party and a member of the Osun Park Management System, was shot dead at the Mayfair Motor Park in Ile-Ife during a meeting convened to resolve the leadership dispute. Oyeyemi, popularly known as Ajagungbade Emir, was an associate of Governor Adeleke. Eyewitness accounts said the attackers called him out, hit his head with a hammer and shot him. A doctor at the Osun State University Teaching Hospital later disclosed that Oyeyemi sustained severe head injuries before his death. The killing sent shockwaves through the state's political establishment and intensified calls for a permanent resolution to the NURTW crisis.
In response to the killing, Governor Adeleke announced the reintroduction of a Park Management System across the state, saying an Executive Order would soon be issued to give legal backing to the new system. The government said the PMS was designed to checkmate factional warfare and restore order in the transport sector. The Accord Party has expressed strong support for the initiative, describing it as a necessary intervention to prevent further violence. "The threat of factional warfare is still very on ground, hence the strong support of all and sundry for the creation of a park management system which the state governor will announce in due course," Akande said.
The party called on President Bola Tinubu and the Inspector-General of Police, Tunji Disu, to call MC Oluomo to order, warning that the NURTW chief would be held accountable for any breakdown of law and order in the state. "We therefore strongly frown at the illegal and violent activities of Mr Asiri Eniba supported by Mr MC Oluomo as a remnant of pre-election violence in Osun State which should stop without further delay," the statement read. Accord also urged the Osun Commissioner of Police, Ibrahim Zungura, and other security agencies to enforce the governor's directive requiring rival NURTW factions to stay away from motor parks pending the resolution of the crisis. The party commended the police commissioner for his intervention in maintaining peace and charged other security agencies to secure motor parks across the state to prevent any faction from taking unilateral control of the facilities.
The political dimensions of the crisis are impossible to ignore. MC Oluomo is a known ally and loyalist of President Tinubu, and the accusation that he is orchestrating violence in a state governed by the Accord Party — which is not part of the ruling APC — has injected a partisan dimension into what was initially a trade union dispute. The APC in Osun State has previously traded accusations with the Accord Party over violence at motor parks, with the APC accusing the Adeleke administration of aiding hoodlums responsible for attacks in Ikire in August 2026, and the Accord Party blaming the police for the same incident. The two parties have been locked in a bitter political battle since the August 2026 governorship election, which Governor Adeleke won on the Accord Party platform.
The APC has not yet issued a formal response to the latest allegations. MC Oluomo has also not publicly commented on the Accord Party's claims. The NURTW's national leadership has previously rejected the state government's suspension of its activities, arguing that it lacks legal basis. The police have not announced any arrests in connection with the alleged plot.
For the people of Osun State, the stakes are immediate and tangible. Motor parks are the arteries of local commerce, and prolonged instability in the transport sector disrupts livelihoods, inflates fares and exposes commuters to risk. The killing of Oyeyemi has already demonstrated that the dispute can turn deadly. As the state government moves to establish the Park Management System and the Accord Party demands federal intervention, the coming weeks will determine whether the crisis is resolved through institutional channels or whether it escalates into another round of violence. The warning from the Accord Party is unambiguous: the threat of factional warfare remains real, and the responsibility for preventing it now rests with the Presidency, the police and the leaders of the NURTW itself.
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