By Victor Ahiuma-Young
TRADE Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, has expressed concern over increasing use of inciting and uncivilised campaign languages by  the nation’s politicians ahead of  2011 general elections and demanded immediate stoppage of such languages in the interest of peace and Nigeria’s democracy.

TUC in a statement by Comrade Peter Esele and Chief Kolawole, President-General and Secretary-General, respectively, said: “Elections into political offices should not be seen as a do-or-die affair, but rather as a means of proffering solutions on how best to tackle the various challenges affecting us as a nation.

“The period of electioneering campaigns as done all over the world is a time whereby parties’ programmes and policies are sold to win the electorate. It is aspirants without any known programmes and policies that normally resort to unacceptable methods in the course of electioneering.

“TUC demands that office seekers should be engaged in intellectual debates with robust ideas that will expose identified loopholes in our political and economic systems and proffer solutions on how best to tackle them.

“We would remind all stakeholders in the political arena of the relevant sections of the Electoral Act which prohibits the use of abusive language and other foul plays during an election period.

“Section 95, subsection (1) says: No political campaign or slogan shall be tainted with abusive language directly or indirectly likely to injure religious, ethnic, tribal or sectional feelings.”

While subsection (2) says; Abusive, intemperate, slanderous or base language or insinuations or innuendoes designed or likely to provoke violent reaction or emotions shall not be employed or used in political campaigns.

Also, subsection 7 prescribes  that ; A political party or a person who contravenes any of the provision of this section is guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction_(a) in the case of an individual, to a maximum fine of N1,000,000 or imprisonment for the term of 12 months; and (b) in the case of a political party, to a fine of N2,000,000 in the first instance, and N1,000,000 for any subsequent offence.

(8) Any person or group of persons who aids or abets a political party in contravening the provisions of subsection (5) of this section guilty of an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine of N500,000 or 3 years imprisonment or both.”

In line with this, we demand that the relevant law enforcement agencies should wake up to their responsibilities by arresting, prosecute and if found guilty, jail the offenders no matter how highly placed he/she maybe in the society. It is high time we play politics according to acceptable rules the world over.