The agony of a presidential spokesperson, Daniel Bwala – THISAGE

Daniel Bwala, Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Media and Political Communication, said his primary responsibility is to defend the policies and programs of the Tinubu administration everywhere in the world.

He criticized what he described as “opposition research-style journalism” during his recent interview with journalist Mehdi Hasan.

Bwala made the remarks in a statement released Saturday in response to widespread reactions on social media following the interview, which has generated mixed responses over the past 24 hours.

According to him, he was fully aware of the responsibilities attached to his appointment when he accepted the job from President Tinubu, stressing that promotion and advocacy of the administration’s policies remain central to his mandate.

“When I accepted the privileged assignment given to me by Mr. President, I was well aware of its implications,” Bwala said, adding that he is always ready to appear before any interviewer anywhere in the world to articulate and defend the government’s positions.

The presidential aide explained that the interview was arranged after the Head to Head program contacted him months earlier, saying the discussion would focus on key national issues such as security, the economy and corruption.

However, Bwala said he was surprised when the host raised questions about his past political statements, noting that such line of questioning had not been disclosed during the nearly six months of communication preceding the interview.

“Nowhere in our nearly six months of communication did they mention that they would challenge my background. If that had been their plan, ethically and professionally, they should have informed me so I could prepare my response,” he said.

Bwala also said that some of the quotes attributed to organizations and groups during the interview were inaccurate, insisting that many of them constituted fake news.

He also criticized his previous statements about President Tinubu when he was in opposition, describing them as part of a normal political contestation.

Bwala noted that political alignments often evolve, citing examples from global politics where individuals who once criticized leaders later worked with them in government.

The presidential aide rejected criticism from opposition figures and their supporters, saying their reactions were driven by political interests and would not distract him from his responsibilities.

He also thanked Nigerians and others who sent messages praising his performance during the interview, which he described as a difficult undertaking in which the interviewer frequently interrupted his answers.

Despite the controversy, Bwala expressed admiration for Hasan, describing him as one of the most formidable speakers in global media, and said he looked forward to participating in a second part of the Head to Head interview.

According to him, the next engagement would provide an opportunity to focus more on the policies, programs and achievements of the Tinubu administration.

The statement reads: “In the last 24 hours, social media has exploded due to my interview with Mehdi Hassan, albeit with different opinions. Let me set the record straight.

“When I accepted the privileged assignment given to me by Mr. President, I was well aware of its implications. Selling ice cream, looking good and seeking the praise of men have never been part of it. Some of the fiercest critics of my interview can’t even stand local TV hosts. But the task of promoting and defending the President and his administration is what I do with ease and joy. I am ready to appear before any interviewer, anywhere in the world, any day and at any time, to defend this government and its policies.

“I have never agreed, and never will, to dodge or dodge interviews on matters involving the promotion and defense of the administration for which I was appointed. It is the least of what is required of me.

“Head to Head contacted me asking for an interview, stating that they wanted to challenge our government on security, the economy and corruption. In our almost six months of communication they never mentioned that they would challenge my background. If that was their plan, ethically and professionally, they should have informed me so I could prepare my response. But that’s fine, ethically, it’s up to them, not me.

“I refused to swallow the pill of Mehdi’s ‘research-style opposition journalism’ and even today, if you carefully compare what he read as quotes from organizations and groups, you will see that many were inaccurate and some were outright fake news. But I’ll leave that for another day.

“As for what I said in the past about President Tinubu, I am happy that they were things I said when I was riding in the opposition with such zeal. It’s all politics. Half of Donald Trump’s cabinet is made up of people who once spoke against him, and a good number of people in our cabinet have also spoken against President Tinubu in the past. These things don’t bother him, if you ask me.

“Most of the opponents are members of the opposition and their sympathisers. This does not bother me in the slightest. Their temporary excitement over the interview did not and will not last, because it does not eliminate their obvious problem of lack of vision, lack of mission in leading and managing a political party; yet they are trying to manage Nigeria. They clearly have no path to victory and no alternative policy or program for the Nigerian people. And if they say yes, they may as well clash and be interrogated. that; as the said in Hausa “Ga fili Ga doki”

“I conclude by thanking the many Nigerians and non-Nigerians who sent their praise for my courageous defense of our government in an interview where the host would hardly allow you to answer a question unless it suited his narrative.

“I still have admiration and respect for Mehdi Hassan as arguably the best speaker on the planet. I look forward to the second part of the Head-to-Head interview and am happy that at that point questions about my past will no longer be new, so we can focus on the policies, programs of our administration and what we have achieved so far.”



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