 In a May 2009 interview, Aliyu said a police report presented to the Court of Appeal on the Osun State governorship election petition was forged, noted that the sole role of police in an election was to keep the peace, and expressed confidence in the evolution towards full democracy in Nigeria.Aliyu ran for reelection for a fourth term in April 2011, but was defeated by the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) candidate Ibrahim Musa who polled 131,872 votes to 83,778 for Aliyu.After the election Aliyu, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Security, filed a petition with the Niger state election petition tribunal against Ibrahim Musa.