APC says GEJ is flouting campaign laws, LP says INEC is afraid of APC/PDP

  The All Progressives Congress accused President Goodluck Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of engaging in premature campaigning ahead of the 2015 elections.  Apart of the many trips President Jonathan has made to traditional rulers and churches in the last few months, he declared at the PDP zonal rally in Enugu on Friday that the ruling party would recapture the South-East in 2015.  Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said the President and the PDP were engaging in “crass lawlessness” by their serial violation of the country’s electoral law, under the guise of “liberation, family or unity rallies.”  The statement read in part, “Hiding under nomenclature, this President has led his party to engage in brazen lawlessness and shameless impunity.  “They have gained an undue advantage over other parties, or beaten the gun, in athletics parlance. Therefore, they should suffer the consequences of their action, the least of which is a strong public rebuke, to be followed by stipulated sanctions if they persist.  “If nothing is done to check this lawlessness, Nigerians should brace for more in the days ahead. What example is the President laying by violating the law? What signal is he sending to Nigerians about the need to respect the laws of the land? When a President brazenly violates the electoral law under the guise of some rally, has he not started election rigging? Has he not already started compromising the electoral umpires and the security agencies?  “We know the President’s conniving handlers and advisers do not
appreciate that a higher standard of conduct is expected of the President of Nigeria, through his statements, actions and body language.  “Unfortunately, everything points to the fact that the President, by his serial violation, is telling Nigerians and the whole world loud and clear that the coming elections will neither be free and fair nor credible.’’  The National Chairman of the United Peoples Party, Chief Chekwas Okorie, says the acts of the President are worrying, and he ought to lead by example.  He said, “We are worried that the number one citizen of this country will be flouting a critical part of our electoral law. Maj.Gen. Ike Nwachukwu clearly asked the people to vote 100 per cent for Jonathan, this amounts to soliciting for votes.  “The President went on to declare that the PDP will capture the South- East and this is a clear violation of the Electoral Act. The President must lead by example.”  And the National Chairman of the Labour Party, Chief Dan Nwayanwu, says the Independent National electoral Commission should be blamed for all that was happening because it failed to halt early  campaigns by the PDP and the APC who are complaining now.  He said “INEC is to blame. These campaigns have been ongoing. The   PDP and the   APC started campaigns two months ago. INEC is afraid of handing out sanctions because the two parties have big names and big money. INEC is afraid of them; if it were a small party, the commission would have clamped down on it long ago.”