Low-key Campaigns Herald Council Elections In Borno State

Campaigns are at a low ebb in Borno State as it prepares for the January 20 Local Government Elections.

Barely two weeks to the exercise, residents say they are not aware of the election because of the low-key campaigns by participating political parties and their candidates.

Many residents in Maiduguri said that they were unaware because the usual campaign rallies, billboards or posters of candidates vying for offices were absent.

Six political parties are participating in the elections. While one is participating fully, the others are participating skeletally.

The parties are the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP, the Social Democratic Party, SDP, Labour Party, LP and the Allied Peoples Movement, APM.

The Borno State Independent Electoral Commission, BOSIEC announced November 28, 2023 as the kick-off date for campaigns, but candidates have yet to troop out to solicit for votes as was the case in previous elections.

The APC is fielding candidates in all the 27 chairmanship and 315 councillorship positions, but some of its candidates said they were financially handicapped to prosecute the campaigns.

“Many of us are waiting for possible cash support from the party or from the government,’’ an APC chairmanship candidate who requested anonymity said.

Candidates or officials of opposition parties in the state also spoke of similar challenge.

The electoral agency charged chairmanship candidates N500,000 to collect Declaration of Intention forms, while their councillorship counterparts were charged N250,000 for the form.

Publicity Secretary of PDP in Borno, Mr Amos Adziba, said the party would field chairmanship candidates only in five local government areas because of the high cost of the forms and the current economic hardship.

“We are fielding chairmanship candidates and some councillorship candidates in Biu, Askira/Uba, Kwaya-Kusar, Maiduguri Metropolitan and Jere local government areas.

“That is why we concentrate only on those areas for our campaigns.

“Some of our candidates have had to sell their land, farm produce or obtain loans to participate in the election because of the high cost of forms and the current economic hardship,

“We hope the election will be free and fair. For now, we are giving BOSIEC the benefit of the doubt,’’ Adziba said.

In his submission, Chairman of NNPP in Borno, Mr Mohammed Mustafa, said it would field only one chairmanship candidate in Jere Local Government Area and one councillorship candidate each in Jere and Dikwa local government areas.

Similarly, State Secretary of LP, Mr Tijjani Goni, said the party would field only one councillorship candidate in Pulka Ward of Gwoza Local Government Area.

“We are fielding only one councillorship candidate in Pulka Ward of Gwoza. Our initial intention to field more candidates was not possible because of some circumstances,’’ Goni said.

The SDP is also fielding one chairmanship candidate and two councillorship candidates in Jere Local Government Area, while APM is fielding only one councillorship candidate in the same area.

NAN/Confidence Okwuchi