Enugu State’s political landscape is heating up ahead of 2027, with Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate Chief Uche Geoffrey Nnaji accusing the state government of trampling on due process after officials allegedly stormed his campaign office on Abakaliki Road, tearing down posters and carting away campaign materials.
The former Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology says the operation, reportedly carried out by the Enugu State Environmental Protection Agency, amounts to an invasion of privacy and a direct affront to an ongoing legal battle already before the Federal High Court in Abuja.
According to Nnaji, a Motion on Notice challenging the state’s contentious signage policy had already been served on the relevant authorities, yet enforcement proceeded regardless, an act he brands as part of what he calls a “Destroy Enugu First Campaign.”
“My privacy has been invaded by the Enugu State Government. My personal campaign office was attacked… in contravention of an ongoing court process,” Nnaji said, describing the raid as “politically sad and unethical.” He insists that political rivalry should never come at the expense of private property rights, the judicial process and the rule of law.
At the heart of the dispute is a controversial ₦150 million advertising permit introduced by the Enugu State Structures for Signage and Advertisement Agency, ENSSAA, requiring political parties and candidates to pay before deploying campaign materials, from billboards and banners to branded vehicles, T-shirts, caps and handbills, across the state’s 17 local government areas. ENSSAA General Manager Francis Aninwike has defended the policy as a neutral regulatory measure grounded in the Enugu State Structures for Signage and Advertisement Agency Law No. 12 of 2016, insisting it applies equally to all political actors regardless of party affiliation.
Opposition figures disagree, arguing the steep fee is designed to choke their visibility on the campaign trail.
For Nnaji, though, the bigger question is one of timing and restraint. “Why the haste? Why destroy first when the court is already seized of the matter?” he queried, maintaining that the proper course would have been to let the judiciary rule on the legality of the policy before any enforcement action was taken against materials already in place.
The incident adds to a string of political flashpoints building in Enugu as the state, governed by the PDP for over two decades before Governor Peter Mbah’s defection to the All Progressives Congress, braces for a fiercely contested 2027 race. Earlier this month, Commissioner of Police Bitrus Giwa ordered investigations into separate reports of disrupted opposition gatherings, underscoring the mounting tension between the ruling APC and opposition parties jostling to reclaim ground in the state.
Nnaji has made clear his grievance is not merely about permit costs or advertising regulation, but about what he considers an unlawful incursion into a private campaign space while its legal basis remains unresolved in court.
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