Okonkwo: It’s Unlawful to Attack Supporters of Opposition Candidates

David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka

The Director General of the Atiku Abubakar Campaign Council in Anambra State, Prof. Obiora Okonkwo has stressed that it is unlawful for people to attack candidates of opposition political parties as the elections draw near.

Okonkwo lamented the attacks on Nigerians for supporting presidential candidates of their choice, saying such should not be the case in a democracy.
The former governorship candidate in Anambra State said this as a guest lecturer at a symposium organised by the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), where he presented a paper on the ‘Role of the Media in Guaranteeing the Sanctity of the Electoral Process in Nigeria.’

He said: “As journalists and professionals we are trained to be fair and report all sides without bias and I thank our journalists for upholding the ethics of their profession.
“But there is an introduction of a new trend in the politics of Nigeria where people are insulted vilified and treated as outcasts because they are not backing their preferred candidate.

“I remember that when late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe was NCNC, my own uncle was in Action Group (AG) and heavens didn’t fall.
“We also had the era of NPN and NPP and we also got to a situation whereby at the end we had an accord with the NPN and we produced the Speaker House of Representatives.

“So we cannot at this point put all our eggs in one basket because of politics and politics is very dynamic and that is the beauty of politics and democracy.”
Okonkwo, however stressed that Nigerians should endeavor to respect the views and positions of others in the interest of the unity of the country.
Also speaking, the Commissioner for Information, Paul Nwosu, who was the keynote speaker, while speaking on the imperativeness of using the traditional media in marketing state policies, noted that the country was one and cannot be threatened by the activities of those he described as people who have the Hitler Mob mentality.

“It is not in our character to subjugate the wished and aspirations of other Nigerian people because of your support for a certain candidate and to us journalists we must be fair and credible in our reportage,” he said.