*Ahead of his declaration for a second term, President Jonathan’s billboards dot all parts of Abuja

Femi Ipaye/Abuja

Even though he is yet to declare his second term ambition, supporters of President Goodluck Jonathan have left no one in doubt about who is in control of Abuja, Nigeria’s federal capital territory as they have flooded the city with his billboards and in the process displacing previous users of the advertisement hoardings.

It has been estimated that over 2000 bill boards of Mr President has been erected on the major roads right from the Abuja Airport, the Central Area and other parts of the city.

Critics say the President and his supporters are actively using the power of incumbency to muscle other commercial users of the billboards out of the way.

Just like the ubiquitous Jonathan’s commercials sponsored by the Transformation Ambassadors of Nigeria, it is becoming difficult to avoid the President’s gaze wherever you are in FCT nowadays. And the situation is bound to get worse as political jobbers hurried the country towards 2015.