Piqued by reports of the alleged use of soldiers by the minister of state for defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, in the April 5 House of Representatives by-election in Ondo State, President Goodluck Jonathan has reportedly barred all ministers and presidential aides from undertaking unauthorised campaigns.
The president is said to have specifically frowned at the use of security men, especially soldiers attached to federal government officials to intimidate opposition elements.
As a first move in this regard, President Jonathan, it was gathered, has directed all ministers and presidential aides embarking on such trips as political rallies outside their states to obtain direct permission from him through his chief of staff, Brigadier-General Jones Arogbofa (rtd).
A presidency source confided in LEADERSHIP that apart from the briefings of the military authorities on Obanikoro’s role in the inconclusive election, the Ondo state governor, Olusegun Mimiko had also briefed the president on the election and the violence that marred it in one ward as a result of the activities of ex-militants in the area.
“The use of soldiers or any other security personnel during election has to be authorised and in this case, I doubt if it was so; our preliminary, though informal findings show that the minister in question was indeed in Ondo to campaign for the PDP.
“The issue here is whether he was right or wrong to have gone to another state outside his state to campaign.
“This is serious because any act of violence or irregularity could be blamed on him that he came to prepare the ground for such; it is also being interpreted in some quarters to mean that the president has unleashed his men on the opposition, especially in the South-west.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Mr President does not have such attributes; he is a gentleman who wants his party to win under clear circumstances and not through any tainted means.
“So, in a bid to avoid a re-occurrence, he has asked that all ministers and even aides who are not from states where elections are holding should not be near campaign grounds.”
of such states except otherwise directed by him or the national leadership of the PDP and possibly after direct permission from him through the chief of staff.
“This has become very necessary because the two instances in question involving the said minister all happened in the Southwest; again, it is worrisome that if this step is not taken by Mr President internally, there is the likelihood that more might follow.
“You know we are approaching two critical elections in Osun and Ekiti as a prelude to the 2015 elections; so if certain administrative steps are not taken to stem possible misuse of soldiers, we don’t pray for such, but you can imagine the consequences that might follow; so we will not ignore such,” he said.
Leadership