A group of legal practitioners has issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Independent National Electoral Commission and the Nigeria Police Force to investigate the killings and violence that accompanied the Osun State governorship election.

The Coalition of Public Interest Lawyers and Advocates said about 30 people lost their lives in the violence.

Speaking in Abuja, the group’s National Coordinator, Ajibola Bello, said the allegations went beyond political parties and election results. He called for a thorough probe into videos that allegedly show political actors threatening opponents, seeking to stop citizens from voting, and in one case calling for the killing of members of an opposition party.

Bello stressed that the outcome of the election does not cancel criminal responsibility for offences allegedly committed before or during the poll.

He referred to videos linked to figures in the All Progressives Congress campaign and a serving lawmaker, saying such materials provided enough grounds for an impartial investigation.

The coalition urged the police and other security agencies to authenticate the videos, identify those involved, interview witnesses and establish the circumstances of the reported killings.

It also called on INEC to exercise its prosecutorial powers under the Electoral Act where evidence of offences exists.

Bello said the group was not asking the authorities to declare anyone guilty, but insisted there should be no institutional buck-passing. He added that the easiest way to disprove claims of selective justice was to enforce the law without fear or favour.