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Bwala Defends Nigeria After Kemi Badenoch’s Criticism, Calls It Political Strategy
Daniel Bwala, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy Communication, has weighed in on the recent criticism from Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the UK’s Conservative Party, about Nigeria.
According to Bwala, Badenoch’s remarks were motivated by a desire to secure favor within her party rather than any genuine concern for Nigeria.
Last week, Badenoch made headlines when she expressed her concerns about Nigeria’s governance, warning that Britain could face similar challenges if it failed to reform its system.
She emphasized the importance of trust and touted the Conservative Party as the right choice to prevent the UK from suffering the consequences seen in countries like Nigeria.
In response to these remarks, Bwala appeared on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Monday, dismissing the idea that Badenoch’s comments would harm Nigeria’s international standing or efforts to attract foreign investment.
“She’s not the government in power, so her comments won’t affect international relations or collaborations,” Bwala explained.
“International dealings usually happen between governments, and since she’s not in power, it won’t have any effect. Also, investors will be wise enough to recognize whether her statements are just political rhetoric.”
“The problem we have with Kemi is her rhetoric,” he continued. “She belongs to the right-wing base in the UK, where populism feeds off anger and discontent.
By denigrating Nigeria, she’s trying to gain support and approval from the right wing of her party.”
TV anchor Rufai Oseni makes headlines as he speaks on fuel subsidy in Nigeria. He shared that Nigeria can have fuel subsidy without the long queues at filling stations.
“When we were still paying subsidies, there were no long queues. We were subsidising. So you can still have a subsidy regime going on, and there will be no long queues because production was close by. Dangote had it. That’s just it. That argument also falls flat.
“The biggest beneficiaries of subsidy are not Nigerians. They are crony capitalists that have big infrastructure, and they do contracts. They have been the biggest beneficiaries of the subsidy,” he said.
Lagos State Governor, Sanwo-Olu, speaks to those in the electricity sector about the usual blackouts in the state.
He speaks on ways things can change in the state and how electricity can be provided.
“We need to drop corporate egos, abandon long-standing excuses, and confront the harsh realities obstructing progress in the power sector.”
“We, state governments, used to give excuses that everything is centralised, so the Federal Government has unbundled it now. What have we done in a year and a half?” Sanwo-Olu asked.
“We take two steps forward, we go five steps backward,” he said.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has declared Thursday, August 20, a work-free day for public servants in the state to mark the Isese Festival.
Speaking on the celebration, he said “Ìṣẹ̀ṣe is not a relic. It is a living expression of our traditions and a celebration of Yoruba spirituality as an important part of Nigeria’s cultural and religious landscape,” he said.
He added “When the drums sound in Lagos on Thursday, they answer drums in Havana, in Salvador, in Port of Spain. Fifty-five million people and counting. Lagos is not observing a local holiday. Lagos is standing at the centre of a global heritage,” Aregbe said.
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