Advert agencies in Nigeria are reportedly turning down offers from the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, for fear of backlash from President Muhammadu Buhari’s government.
It was alleged that 12 advert agencies; five in Abuja and seven in Lagos have rejected advertisement requests from Atiku’s campaign team
Although the official window of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for commencement of political adverts is November 18, politicians have been staying ahead of the game by using third parties, such as pressure and support groups, to place adverts at strategic points in various cities.
According to SaharaReporters, an ad agency executive in Lagos, who asked not to be named said that the fear of the government of the day is preventing them from accepting promotional materials from Atiku.
“The problem is that every advert agency the Atiku team has approached; the ones that I am aware of have turned down the offer because of the fear that the government would move against them. I turned them down myself; both cash and cheque offers to have Atiku feature on billboards in Lagos,” the source was quoted as saying.
