Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
As a man who believes in doing the right thing always and setting an enviable standard for all to emulate, a leading governorship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Asue Ighodalo has said he is ready to comply with the rules governing electioneering process in the country as stipulated by the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) guidelines.
He commended the INEC for its directive that political parties and their aspirants should pull-down their campaign bill boards, posters and jingles being aired on television and radio stations in the state.
Recall the INEC’s State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Dr Anugbum Onuoha, on Friday, gave the warning at an Inter-agency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) meeting in Benin.
INEC said the warning had become imperative to remind political actors in the state that the ban on election campaigns had not been lifted.
Onuoha at ICCES meeting said “lf you look at the Edo election timetable, it says that commencement of campaign in public by political parties will be on April 24.
“But what is happening in this state right now, is that all the political parties are campaigning in public not private.
“If you go round the town, you see campaign billboards, posters and jingles of aspirants not even candidates.
“We have held a meeting with the Inter-Party Advisory Council Nigeria (IPAC) in Edo on this issue but they have clearly not stopped.
“So I thought I should bring the issue here for us to proffer collective solutions so that nobody will be accused of supporting party A or B,” he said.
According to him, “we are going to hold a press conference to inform the general public and the political parties that what is happening is in total violation of the electoral law.
“And INEC will not fail to sanction any party which goes ahead to campaign after the warning,” he added.
However, Ighodalo said INEC’s warning was timely, saying, “it is a good sign that the nation’s political umpire is actually on its toes ready to whip in line anyone who flouts the electoral laws ahead of the Sept.21 governorship election.
Ighodalo said he had asked his campaign team to immediately comply with INEC’s directive.