Monday, 20 January 2014
Jonathan had on several occasions told Nigerians that he has not deemed it appropriate to declare his intention given the enormous of work before him, warning ambitious politicians against unnecessarily heating up the polity.
A look through the town revealed campaign posters and billboards of different dimensions and messages by individuals and groups. While some posters were outrightly campaigning for the president, others were calling on him to contest the next presidential election.
Pillars upholding Mabushi Bridge had many posters pasted on them. Of particular interest is that of a governorship aspirant in Nasarawa State, one “Alh. (Dr.) El-Kabir Wakili” appearing together with the president calling on the electorate to “vote a winning team”. Also, at the airport junction axis of Kado Expressway stood a giant billboard with a bold inscription “Nigeria Youths For Goodluck Jonathan” in 2015.
Other posters were indiscriminately pasted on available spaces especially bridge heads around the Federal Secretariat in the three-arm zone and Kashim Ibrahim way in Maitama district of the city in such a manner that constituted nuisance in the areas affected.
The sponsors of these campaign posters have, by their actions knowingly or unknowingly, contravened Section 99 (subsection 1) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) which states that: “For the purpose of this Act, the period of campaigning in public by every political party shall commence 90 days before polling day and end 24 hours prior to that day.”
Though a date for the next presidential election has not been fixed by the electoral umpire, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), it is certainly more than 90 days from now and all eyes are on INEC to enforce the law to the letter.
