2015 Election: President Jonathan, PDP plan to campaign in states controlled by Boko Haram

After over 250 days of shunning the troubled North-East following the abduction of over 200 schoolgirls by terrorists in Chibok, Borno State, President Goodluck Jonathan is set to hit the region  with his campaign train to seek the people's support for his re-election bid.

According to the Peoples Democratic Party National Secretary, Prof. Wale Oladipo, who spoke with Saturday PUNCH during the week in Abuja, the President and the PDP would leave no part of the country unvisited to campaign for support.

He said, "We will visit all parts of the country to campaign. There is no state in Nigeria that the PDP and the President will not visit, including the North-East

"We believe in the sovereignty of the country and that is why we are taking every part of the nation seriously."

Asked if this would not be seen as daring and contemptuous of the people of the North-East, who the President refused to visit even when their towns and cities were being bombed almost every day, he said, "The President does one thing or the other on daily basis. He could be busy attending to issues, some of them if not all, could have positive effect on the lives of the people of the region."

Also the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, reinforced Oladipo's comment, saying notwithstanding the security challenges confronting Nigeria, Jonathan would visit all the states affected by the Boko Haram violence to campaign ahead of the 2015 general elections.

Abati said, "I have no doubt that the President is going to campaign to all Nigerians. A campaign timetable will be issued and the President will visit all parts of the country because he knows that we are facing another election.

"He is not taking any Nigerian for granted because he has served Nigerians faithfully and he is coming to them again in humility to ask for their supports and votes.

"We have no doubt that Nigerians will stand solidly behind him."