Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has described Nigeria’s opposition as “desperados” and “content creators,” accusing them of lacking the ideas and preparedness to govern the country.
Bwala stated this on Thursday while speaking on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, where he criticised the opposition’s approach to the Tinubu administration.
He alleged that the opposition had failed, over the past three years, to present Nigerians with an alternative policy direction or explain what it would do differently from the current administration.
According to him, “The opposition in Nigeria, they are lazy. They don’t have a job. That’s why in the past three years, they have never been able, and up till today, to tell Nigerians one thing that they will do differently from what we are doing.”
Bwala accused opposition politicians of focusing on issues that generate public discussion rather than presenting concrete alternatives.
He said, “What they do is every optic that flies in the air that tends to create a talking point, whether it is right or wrong, they keep talking about it.”
He also defended President Tinubu’s relationship with governors across political parties, arguing that the administration’s policies and federal interventions had attracted support from some governors outside the All Progressives Congress, APC.
Bwala cited governors in Bauchi, Anambra and Abia states as examples, arguing that governors would naturally support a president whose policies and interventions benefit their states.
He said the President’s governance style was responsible for winning people over, particularly when governors approach the Federal Government for projects or policies that affect their states.
According to him, “You will ask yourself, why should I be against a man who is after my interest? Is it in the very essence of democracy? That is the style President Tinubu is using to win people around him.”
Bwala said the growing support for President Tinubu among politicians from different parties was frustrating the opposition, which he accused of failing to deliver when it had the opportunity to govern.
He alleged that previous administrations had used federal powers to punish governors and states controlled by opposition parties.
Bwala said, “In their time, do you know what they were doing? If a governor said something they didn’t like, they would remove him. Lagos State suffered and didn’t get any kobo from the local government council that was created. They used all these things to punish their people.”
Rejecting claims that Nigeria was becoming a one-party state, Bwala asked how such a claim could be made when several political parties are registered with the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and are participating in elections.
He said, “Do you know how many parties are registered with INEC? Do you know how many parties are going into the election? The election in Osun, is it a one-party election?”
Bwala further argued that the opposition lacked an understanding of the meaning of a one-party state.
He said, “They don’t even know the meaning and the idea behind a one-party state.”
He also accused opposition politicians of lacking political awareness, saying they had failed to demonstrate a clear ideological direction.
Bwala alleged that some opposition figures had struggled to explain the ideology behind their political parties despite claiming to have produced a manifesto.
He said, “They even say they sat together and produced a manifesto. And when the man went to TV and they asked him what the ideology of his party was, he was still stammering.”
Bwala concluded his criticism of the opposition by saying, “These guys are desperados. Leave them. They are just content creators. They are not prepared.”
He, however, called for a new generation of politicians with fresh ideas, saying President Tinubu’s administration was creating opportunities for younger people to occupy leadership positions.
According to him, “We need a new generation of politicians that will come with ideas.”
He added, “The vision of President Bola Tinubu is that by the time he leaves government, younger people would have taken over the government of Nigeria.”
Bwala said the presence of young people in various positions within the administration reflected that vision, expressing confidence that President Tinubu would secure a second term.
He said, “That’s why, if you look at his government, you see young people in various positions. This man will run Nigeria as the best President Nigeria has ever had.”
