Ngelale vs Onanuga: Is There Trouble in Tinubu’s Media Team?

Conflicting messages from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s media team have raised questions about internal coherence and strategy just as Nigeria marks a significant milestone in its democratic journey on May 29.

As President Tinubu celebrates the first anniversary of his presidency, his advisers appear to be on different pages regarding his planned activities, especially the traditional national broadcast on a day like this.

Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, had informed the public that President Tinubu would address the National Assembly today, Wednesday.

According to him, this event is part of a broader agenda to commemorate both the 25th anniversary of Nigeria’s democracy and the president’s first year in office.

Contrary to expectations that the President might broadcast his achievements and plans directly to the citizens, Onanuga confirmed that there would be no national broadcast.

Onanuga’s statement:

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will not broadcast to the nation on Wednesday to celebrate his first anniversary as the leader of Nigeria.

“Instead, the President will address a joint session of the National Assembly, which has lined up a program to commemorate 25 years of the nation’s democratic journey at both the executive and legislative levels.

“At the end of the speeches, President Tinubu will commission the National Assembly Library and Resource Center, now to be known as Bola Ahmed Tinubu Building.”

However, this narrative was starkly contradicted by Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity.

Ngelale labeled the reports of Tinubu’s address at the National Assembly as “false and unauthorised,” asserting that the President’s office was not involved in the planning of such an event.

Ngelale’s statement:

“Given public commentary concerning the President delivering a speech before a Joint Sitting of the National Assembly tomorrow, May 29, 2024, it is important to state that this information is false and unauthorised as the Office of the President was not involved in the planning of the event.”

This discrepancy indicates a possible underlying issues within the media team tasked with managing the president’s public image, which could impact the public’s perception of the administration.

Tinubu was sworn in as Nigeria’s President on May 29, 2023.