GAM to remove ‘misplaced’ campaign posters

AMMAN — The Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) on Thursday urged candidates running in the local and municipal council elections to abide by its campaigning regulations.

The municipality has vowed to take down all election campaign posters and banners that violate its campaigning terms and regulations, according to Mazen Farajin, head of GAM media department.

“Placing election campaign posters and banners on main circles, intersections and squares is not allowed. Also, putting up posters and banners in ways that obstruct pedestrian movement, traffic flow, traffic lights, street signs and the numbering of streets and buildings, is banned,” GAM announced on Thursday.

The municipality, however, sanctioned posters and banners for the upcoming local and municipal elections, slated for August 15, on secondary circles, intersections and squares, provided that an approval is obtained from the director of the area, among other conditions, according to GAM.

“The municipality is very keen to achieve successful and organised elections and is also keen to achieve an organised campaigning process. GAM teams are closely following up on election campaigning and no major violations have occurred so far,” Farajin told The Jordan Times.

GAM has required every candidate to sign a pledge to abide by its regulations, as well as giving a JD1,000 deposit, to guarantee compliance with the regulations.

Candidates are requested to remove all banners and posters within a week after the end of the elections, and, if they fail to abide by the regulations or to remove their posters within the allocated period, the municipality will confiscate the deposits, according to GAM.

Under the 2017 amendments to the by-law of electoral districts of governorate councils, Jordan has 158 constituencies, and 12 governorate councils. Eighty-five per cent of the council seats will be elected, while 15 per cent will be appointed by the Cabinet, under the by-law governing the process.

Independent Election Commission’s (IEC) spokesperson, Jihad Momani, told The Jordan Times in previous remarks that the commission’s teams officially began monitoring candidates’ campaigns on Monday, the first day of candidacy registration.

During the campaign so far, the IEC has registered some violations, including displaying logos of the state on advertising material and placing banners in a way that blocked drivers’ sight at intersections, Momani said.