Signage and advertisement agency blames party officials for destruction of campaign posters

Chief Jude Emecheta, Managing Director of Anambra Signage and Advertising Agency (ANSAA), has blamed top officials of political parties and their supporters for the reported cases of destruction of campaign posters.

Emecheta told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Awka on Thursday that the agency officials were not responsible for the destruction of billboards ahead of the Nov. 18 governorship election in the state.

NAN reports some political parties in the state had complained and petitioned the agency for the destruction of their campaign materials by unknown persons after they had paid signage fees.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) had described the act as a mark of rascality and called on ANSAA and the state government to check the ugly trend.

NAN reports that in a statement by Mr Chidi Adirika, in the Media and ICT Directorate of Mr Tony Nwoye’s Campaign Organisation, the APC said the growing onslaught on opposition materials was condemnable.

“It is bad enough that the state government imposed unreasonable levies on any candidate who wished to mount campaign billboards or paste posters.

“Yet it sends out its hoodlums to single out all billboards and posters belonging to Dr Tony Nwoye for destruction,’’ he said.

The party urged its members not to engage in any form reprisal and pleaded for issue-based politics.

Responding, Emecheta blamed political brigandage and politics of bad blood for the alleged destruction of billboards and posters of candidates.

He said there had been some level of compliance from APC and PDP in terms of payment while acknowledging that there had been complaints of poster war in the state.

“ANSAA officials do not pull down billboards, anybody who complied with the rules is not supposed to have problems unless it is in areas that is not permitted by the payment they made.

“It is as a result of brigandage among these politicians, not just the opposition, even APGA billboards are also pull down.

“Unfortunately, some of these people in campaign directorates are comfortable with what is happening, they must condemn it and tell their supporters to stop it.

“By way of pleading with these politicians, I want to say that Anambra belongs to us all and will remain with us after election, they should purge themselves of this bad blood politics.

“If we destroy everything we have for this election, we will have to repair them later,’’ he said.

Emecheta said ANSAA had constituted a monitoring team with the Police to protect signage property in the state, warning that culprits would be made to face the law.