By Paul
THE presidential campaign teams of the three major political parties – All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu; Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakr; and Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi – clashed yesterday over false news and hate speech.
In a statement, Tinubu’s campaign Director, Media and Publicity, Mr Bayo Onanuga, accused Atiku and Obi of funding fake news against Tinubu in the intention of disqualifying the former Lagos State governor, which he said would not benefit the duo’s presidential bid.
Instead of seeking to distract attention, the Atiku/Okowa Presidential Campaign Organisation challenged Tinubu to come clean about his involvement in the alleged unlawful drug-related forfeiture of $460,000 to US authorities.
Similarly, the LP’s Obi-Datti campaign asked the APC to look within its ranks for those responsible for the alleged forgery of the letter-headed paper of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to issue a fake statement, saying it was saddening that a party whose candidate had a history of document falsification could have the audacity to accuse innocent people of doing the same.
Tinubu, Atiku, and Obi exchanged blows as the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, CBCN, encouraged political parties and candidates to centre their campaigns on issues ahead of the 2023 general elections.
In addition, the Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF, cautioned parliamentarians that hate speech constituted a serious threat to the unity and stability of a democratic society, as well as the preservation of human rights and the rule of law.
