By George Mgbeleke
\nPro-democracy and civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) says the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) owes Nigerians a clear explanation of the regulatory framework applicable to the reported donations of over 100 branded campaign vehicles, generators and electronic speakers by High Chief Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, in support of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu\u2019s 2027 re-election campaign.<\/p>\n
Specifically, Government Tompolo who operates the security firm Tantitia has so far been quoted in the media to have donated 50 brand new vehicles to Kano state, 44 branded brand new vehicles to Borno State, 34 branded vehicles to Katsina state, 25 branded vehicles to Taraba State for the purposes of house to house campaigns for the incumbent president to be re-elected in the January 2027 presidential poll. <\/p>\n
In a statement by the group’s national coordinator,Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko ,HURIWA says the civil rights group is not alleging that the reported donation is illegal but we are bothered about what threshold INEC has set for private donations to presidential candidates in the forthcoming general elections just as we think allowing government contractors to donate massive and significant quantity of expensive vehicles and other logistics may occasion the observation of members of the public regarding the borderline between voluntary donations and political corruption. Rather, HURIWA is calling on INEC to clarify whether such donations and campaign materials are required to be disclosed, valued and reflected in the relevant campaign-finance records under Nigeria\u2019s electoral laws and regulations.<\/p>\n
The rights group says transparency in political financing is essential to public confidence in the electoral process, particularly where substantial resources are reportedly being deployed for political mobilisation.<\/p>\n
HURIWA says the reported donation deserves public scrutiny because of its scale and because Tompolo is a prominent figure in Nigeria\u2019s oil and gas sector who has business interests involving Federal Government contracts.<\/p>\n
According to HURIWA, that circumstance does not by itself establish any conflict of interest or wrongdoing, but it makes it reasonable for the appropriate regulatory authorities to ensure that all applicable disclosure and campaign-finance requirements are complied with.<\/p>\n
HURIWA National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, says INEC should provide Nigerians with clarity rather than allow speculation to fill the information gap.<\/p>\n
\u201cIs INEC watching?<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are not asking INEC to declare that any offence has been committed. We are asking the electoral commission to tell Nigerians what the law requires when an individual donates vehicles and other campaign logistics to support a presidential candidate particularly when such a donor is a private contractor engaged by the current federal administration and is handling juicy contracts such as securing crude oil pipelines.<\/p>\n
\u201cHas the donation been properly declared? How should such in-kind contributions be valued for regulatory purposes? Who is responsible for recording them, and are the applicable campaign-finance limits and disclosure requirements being observed?<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are legitimate questions for an electoral regulator to answer.\u201d<\/p>\n
HURIWA says the distinction between a lawful political donation and an unreported or improperly accounted-for campaign contribution must be respected.<\/p>\n
The organisation therefore urges INEC to establish the relevant facts and, where appropriate, request the necessary documentation from the political party, campaign organisation or other responsible entities.<\/p>\n
HURIWA says the APC, like every other political party participating in the 2027 election, should be prepared to demonstrate compliance with all applicable electoral and campaign-finance requirements.<\/p>\n
\u201cPolitical support is a legitimate part of democratic participation. Wealthy individuals are not prohibited from supporting candidates simply because they are wealthy.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut democracy also requires transparency. Where material resources are donated for campaign purposes, Nigerians are entitled to know whether those resources are being properly disclosed and accounted for in accordance with the law.\u201d<\/p>\n
HURIWA says it would be premature for anyone to characterise the reported donation as political corruption without an examination of the facts and the applicable legal provisions.<\/p>\n
However, the organisation says it would equally be unacceptable for the electoral regulator to ignore questions arising from significant campaign contributions merely because they involve supporters of the governing party.<\/p>\n
HURIWA therefore calls on INEC to:<\/p>\n
1. Clarify the applicable rules governing in-kind campaign donations such as vehicles, generators and electronic equipment;<\/p>\n
2. State whether such donations are required to be valued and included in campaign-finance returns;<\/p>\n
3. Establish whether the reported donation has been properly documented and disclosed by the relevant political actors; and<\/p>\n
4. Take any regulatory action that may become necessary if evidence of non-compliance is established.<\/p>\n
HURIWA says these questions should be addressed without political favour or prejudice, and that the same standards must apply to the APC and every other political party and presidential candidate.<\/p>\n
The rights group says the credibility of the 2027 electoral process will depend not only on the conduct of voting and counting but also on the transparency of the resources used to influence voters before election day.<\/p>\n
HURIWA therefore urges INEC to act proactively, provide clarity and demonstrate that Nigeria\u2019s campaign-finance rules are capable of being applied impartially to powerful donors, political parties and candidates alike.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By George Mgbeleke Pro-democracy and civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) says the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) owes Nigerians a clear explanation of the regulatory framework applicable to the reported donations of over 100 branded campaign vehicles, generators and electronic speakers by High Chief Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11875,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18220","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18220","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18220"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18220\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18221,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18220\/revisions\/18221"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11875"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18220"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18220"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18220"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}