Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has dismissed criticism over his appearance on Al Jazeera’s Head to Head programme, saying he has no regrets defending the administration and would do so anywhere in the world.
The interview, aired Thursday, sparked a backlash on social media, particularly on X, where clips went viral, with critics calling Bwala’s performance an embarrassment.
Host Mehdi Hassan repeatedly confronted Bwala with past statements in which he had described President Tinubu as a drug baron, corrupt, and unfit to lead, comments made before Bwala defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress in 2023. When Bwala denied some of the statements, Hassan produced video evidence, prompting further ridicule online.
Hassan also pressed Bwala on Nigeria’s worsening security situation, citing reports from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. Critics argued Bwala struggled to counter these figures with data of his own.
In a statement Saturday, Bwala said the backlash from what he described as opposition sympathisers was predictable and short-lived and would not distract him from his duties.
“The majority of the naysayers are members of the opposition and their sympathisers. It does not bother me one bit. Their temporary excitement over the interview has not lasted and will not last, because it does not take away their obvious problem of lack of vision and mission in conducting and managing a political party.”
He also rejected suggestions that his performance was inadequate.
“Selling ice cream, looking fine, and seeking the praises of men were never part of my job description,” he said. “Promoting and defending the President and his administration is what I do with ease and joy.”
Bwala said Al Jazeera approached him nearly six months ago for an interview on security, the economy, and corruption but never indicated it would probe his personal past.
“Nowhere in our almost six months of communication did they mention that they were going to challenge my past. If that had been their plan, ethically and professionally, they were supposed to inform me so I could prepare. But that’s okay; ethically, that is on them, not me.”
He accused Hassan of using “opposition research-style journalism,” claiming some quotes were inaccurate and others “outright fake news,” which he said he would address later.
On his previous criticisms of Tinubu, Bwala said: “I am glad those were things I said when I was in the opposition saddle with such zeal. It is all politics. Half of Donald Trump’s cabinet once spoke against him, and quite a number in our cabinet also spoke against President Tinubu in the past. Those things do not bother him.”
Bwala was also critical of the opposition: “They have no path to victory and no alternative policies or programme for the Nigerian people. And if they say they do, they can as well go to Head to Head and be interrogated on that.”
He emphasized his readiness to face any interviewer on the administration’s record: “I have never, and will never, subscribe to ducking or dodging interviews on matters that concern promoting and defending the administration I was appointed to serve. It is the least of what is required of me.”
Bwala said he looked forward to a second round on the programme, where he hopes the focus will shift from his past to the administration’s policies and achievements:
“I am glad that by then questions about my past will no longer be news so that we can focus on our administration’s policies, programs and what we have achieved so far.”
Despite his criticism of the interview, Bwala described Hassan as “arguably the best debater on the planet” and said he retained respect for him. He also thanked Nigerians and non-Nigerians who commended his defence of the government in a programme where, he said, the anchor “would hardly let you answer a question unless it suited his narrative.”
