Election campaigns ‘not abiding by public safety rules’

AMMAN — Election campaigns are placing an extra burden on the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM), which has intensified inspections to stop campaign posters from jeopardising public safety, a municipal official said on Tuesday.

Campaign organisers are putting up banners and posters on every available tree, utility pole and fence in the capital, while GAM is removing those that obstruct road visibility, pedestrians or traffic. 

“The period leading up to elections is such a burden and nuisance to us because some campaign organisers don’t abide by the public safety regulations. They put up posters on traffic warning signs, tunnels, roundabouts and traffic islands,” GAM Environment Executive Director Yousef Dalabih told The Jordan Times.

GAM is intensifying inspections to remove posters which violate the rules of electoral campaigns, he said.

The regulations for elections advertising state that every list must appoint a representative to ensure the campaign is in compliance with regulations.

Dalabih said that the municipality contacts the list’s representative when removing a poster, noting that the process is costly.

GAM has requested that every list sign a pledge and deposit JD2,000 to guarantee compliance with the regulations.

Some 1,290 candidates are competing for the 130-seat Lower House on September 20.

Dalabih emphasised that after the elections, campaign organisers are required to take down the advertising materials, which are dumped at two landfills for debris and wood in Ruseifa in Zarqa and Beidah in east Amman.