Uche Ekwunife, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for Anambra Central Senatorial District, has condemned what she calls “waves of fake news and false claims” used against her by opponents ahead of the state’s upcoming general elections.
She questioned why politicians and their supporters had turned to slanderous campaigns rather than issue-based campaigning, adding it does not bode well for Anambra politics.
Speaking yesterday in Awka at an interactive session with journalists organized by the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Anambra State Council, Ekwunife accused politicians of lacking maturity in their campaigns.
“Politicians don’t conduct mature politics; all they do is blackmail to the point where they falsified my letterhead paper in order to concoct all manner of untruth about me,” she claimed. They are out to bring me down and destroy my reputation.
“They’re even ripping down billboards and defacing my posters. They forgot that my billboards are located in the heart of the city. We can’t keep going like this. The opposition is making bogus claims and spreading false stories about me solely because of the election.”
“I am running for the Senate under the PDP, and I am pleased to be a member of the party.”
She warned journalists not to let themselves be manipulated to spread false information about politicians.
Ekwunife also branded insecurity as a national scourge, claiming that progress and development cannot be attained in the South East due to insecurity.
She promised that arrangements had been made to protect citizens’ lives and property not only in her area, but throughout the state.
She revealed that South East legislators are devising strategies to combat insecurity. She did, however, advise traditional rulers and council chairmen to work with the state government to address the state’s rising tide of insecurity.
“I have engaged the state governor to hash out methods in resolving the issue insecurity. In my own district, I’ve collaborated with the police department to see how we can help. “I have given the police force a morale boost, and we have a solar system to hunt down crooks in the state,” she stated.