If the fireworks that preceded official commencement of the election campaigns last Wednesday are anything to go by, Nigerians should be ready for an unprecedented abusive, intemperate, slanderous campaign ever in its 62 years of independence.
Ahead of the 2023 elections and in conformity with Section 94 of the Electoral Act, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), on September 28, blew the whistle for the various political parties in the country to commence the presidential campaign.
Coming less than five months to the elections, the past week witnessed a flurry of activities not only with the commencement of campaigns, but also the fact that the various presidential candidates of the political parties committed by their signatures to a peaceful campaign.
Speaking to the forum, President Muhammadu Buhari, his predecessor, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan called on the political parties to engage in issue-based campaigns, devoid of character assasination, by putting national interest above party or individual interest.
Already, 18 presidential aspirants have been cleared for the elections by the INEC, while over 1,101 and 3, 122 aspirants have been cleared for the Senate and the House of Representatives for the 469-man National Assembly. The list goes on for the 28 states where governorship elections would be held and others looking forward to their legislative elections in March next year.
The main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), has picked the gauntlet by setting up its 326-man Presidential Campaign Council, which has the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Udom Emmanuel as Chairman, with his Bauchi State counterpart, Bala Mohammed as Deputy.
The Abubakar Atiku/Ifeayin Okowa presidential campaign team has the Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tabuwal as the Director-General, while the former governor of Cross Rivers State, Liyel Imoke is the deputy DG.
However, though the All Progressives Congress’ candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Kashim Shettima, penultimate Wednesday constituted a 442-man Campaign Council, headed by the Governor of Plateau State, Solomon Lalong as Director-General, it has since withdrawn the list due to complaints from many quarters.
However, whereas marketing a candidate to the electorate is a very strategic job, since the marketer must espouse his qualification, antecedents, capacity, capability for such job, there is no doubt that in recent times that spokespersons, party loyalists and even hired social media hands have resorted to gutter language, insults and obscene in describing their principals opponents.
In recent times, the media have been awash with such distortions as Obidiots, Obituary, and even a presidential candidate said the youths routing for the Labour Party will labour to death! Worse still, whereas other candidates have presented their certificates to the INEC.
Asiwaju BSc, Shettima GCE, Obi GCE, Datti PhD, Atiku, Master’s Degree, Okowa, MBBS and Kwankawaso and running mate First Leaving Certificate
While very few presidential candidates have publicly displayed their certificates or subjected their academic qualification to public scrutiny, the authenticity of LP’s candidate’s University Degree issued by the University of Nigeria, Nsukka is now questioned everywhere on social media.
To stave this development, INEC has also issued guidelines against caustic campaigns where abusive, intemperate, slanderous campaigns, urges parties to observe rules at rallies and processions . At an even jointly organized by the Institute of Legislative and Democratic Studies, and Kukah Foundation emphasis was laid on issue-based campaigns.
Much as contests of this nature are often fierce, observers have attributed derailment for strategic marketing largely to the appointment of on-media persons and marketers as campaign spokesmen.
Some found it inexplicable that the likes of Senator Dino Melaye has been appointed one of Atiku’s handlers just like Femi-Fani Kayode, erstwhile Aviation Minister, and Festus Keyamu, who have no media or marketing background would speak for Tinubu. Their understanding and interpretation of media management, media ethics, electorate behavior, sociology of communication and needs in their deployment of language at opponents in the face of egregious challenges facing the nation.
Campaign in the states
While the campaign at the national level may have received the attention of many Nigerians, it is worth mentioning that the battle is more vociferous at the state level. In most cases, opposition parties are rarely given equal coverage and publicity at the state government owned stations.
Similarly, opposition parties are rarely allowed to mount billboards in major state capitals, as they are often placed under hard conditionality like heavy tax, or they are vandalized shortly by agents of the ruling party in the state.
In many cases, opposition parties are denied the use of choice locations for rallies, like it happened in Osun State in the build up to the elections. The state chapter of the PDP a couple of months ago described as “shameful” the Governor Adegboyega Oyetola-led administration decision denying the party venue for its mega rally. According to the party’s Caretaker Chairman, Dr Akindele Adekunle, the party was denied the use of a stadium, Technical College field and the Freedom Park which it applied to use for the final campaign programme.
In Ondo State, the immediate past Commissioner for Water and Sanitation, Mrs. Yetunde Adeyanju, who led over 3500 members of the ruling All Progressive Congress to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party in the state, recently trade words with the state government when she was denied the use of the state government field at Ore.
Reminiscences
From the pages of history, Nigeria had campaign spokespersons in the Second Republic who dwelt on issues rather than personality and spreading of misinformation and disinformation. .In the then Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), the likes of Melie Chukelu Kafundu (MCK) Ajuluchukwu, accomplished journalist and Ebenezer Babatope (EbenoTopsy) profound activist, played key roles in managing the research and publicity arm of the party, especially in promoting its free education for all, free medical treatment, full employment, integrated rural development and other programmes that were encapsulate in its welfarist package. Give it also to the leader of the UPN, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who ensured that the party vigorously pursued the ideals of a social democracy on which it was founded.
According to Emeka Duru, in the rival Nigerian Peoples Party (NPP), drawing from the liberal philosophy of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the presidential candidate and Adeniran Ogunsanya, the national chairman, the likes of Kola Balogun, Omo Omoruyi, Paul Unongo, Antonio Fernandez and other brilliant minds seized available opportunities to advertise the key points of the party’s desire for social justice and social change.
The National Party of Nigeria (NPN), which appeared conservative, counted on the vibrancy of its intellectuals such as Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, Ibrahim Tahir and others to market Green Revolution as one of its agricultural policies.
However, the 2011 and 2015 elections witnessed a fierce campaign laced with incendiary remarks. It is on record that Muhammadu Buhari, then a candidate of the CPC, was quoted as saying that blood of monkeys and baboons would flow on the street, while the Kaduna State governor alleged said that partisan international observers would return home in body bags. However, then President Jonathan warned his supporters against violence in the elections, stating that his ambition was not as important as the blood of any Nigerian.
Speaking on the election campaigns, Dr. Akeem Baba-Ahmed, Publicity Secretary of Northern Elders’ Forum said: I’m not predicting, but I’m telling you that it will be difficult for anyone to put up a billboard in the morning and find it standing in the evening because it would have been torn down by people who have taken over the five SouthEastern States. So, forget rallies, forget large gatherings and these are basically what campaigns are about.”
Political pundits not only urged the parties to address the plethora of problems like insecurity, energy, corruption and emigration facing the country, they added that non-compliance with the peace accord, the third in the last 12 years, would reduce it do a worthless piece of paper.
Reactions
A professor of Strategy and Development at Centre Director at Centre for International Advanced and Professional Studies, Anthony Kila, said that the fact that the accord enjoyed the support of two former Heads of State, INEC, and top religious leaders underscored its importance.
He said: “The intentions are good and the next thing is the commitment of the signatories, monitoring and implementation of the agreement is vital. We need to hold these leaders accountable.”
Mr. Charles Aniagwu, one of the spokesmen of Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign Organisation and Commissioner for Information in Delta State, commended the National Peace Committee for the initiatives which commenced in 2015. He added that the principles stated therein were in conformity with policy of Atiku who has never used any incendiary words in his previous campaigns.
“We just hope that all other parties will adhere to the provisions of the accord, because once you append your signature on a document, you are morally bound to adhere to it. In the Atiku Campaign organization, we are convinced that other contestants are Nigerians who have constitutional rights to contest for the various positions and treat them as such.
“On our part, we will stick to the points raised, more so when they are in tandem with belief of my principal as articulated in Atiku’s document- ‘My Covenant with Nigerians, and his five-point development agenda which seeks to restore Nigeria’s unity through equality, social justice, and cooperation among various people.”