• Super Admin
• 08 Mar, 2026

Former presidential candidate and political economist Kingsley Moghalu has questioned the Federal Government over the decision to send presidential spokesperson Daniel Bwala to represent the country in a recent debate on Al Jazeera. Bwala appeared on the programme hosted by journalist Mehdi Hasan, where he defended the record of the administration of President Bola Tinubu before a live global audience. The interview, which aired on Al Jazeera's Head to Head programme, took a dramatic turn when Bwala denied claims he had made while he was in the opposition and also questioned several polls critical of the Tinubu administration's handling of issues such as insecurity, killings and governance. Reacting to the interview in a statement on Sunday, Moghalu said the exchange reflected poorly on Nigeria on the international stage. "The Daniel Bwala interview with Mehdi Hasan on Al Jazeera's Head to Head programme was a disaster of gargantuan proportions for Nigeria as a country, for President Tinubu's administration, and for Bwala himself," he said. According to Moghalu, although the episode had implications for several actors, the least significant impact was on Bwala personally. "Of these three, the last is the least important, because Bwala's track record speaks for itself," he stated. Moghalu added that the global reach of the programme and the presence of an international audience during the debate amplified the damage to Nigeria's image. "The interview made a spectacle of Nigeria, not just because of the reach of the programme globally, but also the format in which there was a global audience in the room itself," he said. "What will each of those people think about Nigeria after such a fact-based shredding of the country's leadership and its performance?" He argued that the episode exposed deeper issues within Nigeria's political culture, which he said was driven more by opportunism than ideology or policy. "It was a sad commentary on Nigeria's political culture in which there are no beliefs, no policies, no ideology, just crass opportunism and the battle for political power," Moghalu said. "Turn-coatism is 'it'." The former presidential candidate also questioned the practice of appointing individuals who had previously criticised an administration to later serve as its spokespersons. "Why appoint former attack dogs of the political opposition as spokespersons and ambassadors for the administration simply because they have 'defected'?" he asked. According to him, individuals who had previously made strong personal attacks against a government could struggle with credibility when representing that same administration. "The baggage such individuals carry -- especially when they did not simply espouse principled opposition that may later change, as sometimes happens in politics, but rather used incendiary and personalised attacks on President Tinubu -- renders such persons lacking in credibility in representational roles," he said. Moghalu further argued that the government could have chosen more credible individuals to represent it internationally. "I think there are people who could be far more credible spokesmen and women for Nigeria's government, even with all its underperformance in governance," he said. "At least, the discussion will focus on the actual track record of the government, not on the government spokesman's prior condemnations of that track record." Describing the incident as unfortunate, Moghalu said he had received calls from acquaintances abroad who were shocked by the debate. "It was a sad day for our country. I've received several calls from friends from various countries around the world. All were in shock and felt sorry to see Nigeria placed in such a spot," he said. He added that many people across the world still hope that Nigeria will eventually realise its potential. "The citizens of Nigeria are brilliant, hardworking and respected all over the world, breaking barriers and achieving feats in various spheres," he said. However, he lamented that governance in the country remained a major challenge. "The government and incompetent governance of Nigeria by its politicians remains a sorry tale," Moghalu said. Source: https://thesun.ng/bwala-moghalu-questions-fg-over-al-jazeera-debate/