Against the backdrop of the critical importance of effective communication between the government and the governed, it remains imperative for any government to ensure it has a formidable media team that will deliver its messages most effectively. Even at that, modern day communication between the government and the governed requires the delivery to comprise a judicious mix of content and choice of platforms to reach as many of the targeted audience as possible. This is courtesy of the apparent explosion and expansion of the terrain of information management whereby there is a multiplicity of platforms and audiences designated to the respective platforms.
Hence the recent appointment of Daniel Bwala into the already star-studded media team of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu may have launched fresh perspectives on the style of the current administration beyond what many Nigerians had assumed. Daniel Bwala, a former close aide to Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general polls, had jumped the ship of loyalty of his former master and joined forces with the president.
Not unexpectedly, several reactions have trailed Bwala’s move as if he has no right to define at any point, his political direction. Hence, beyond any political connotation that is attracted by his appointment, the concern over such must not be about him as a person, but the consequential turn in the fortunes of the presidential media team. For courtesy of the these turns, rises in bold relief the seeming fixation of the administration more on make-believe effect on the citizenry through sheer propaganda, rather than actual delivery of concrete democracy dividends. A pointer to this is the way and manner the team has been jostling and rotating roles among themselves in order to serve as glorified mouth pieces of the president, rather than a more defined component of the overall information management team for the entire administration, as there is a clear difference between the president as an individual and the administration he is leading.
Against the backdrop of the consideration that the character of a leader determines the style of his leadership, the turns in the fortunes of the media team right from the times and exit of Ajuri Ngelale to the coming of Daniel Bwala, remain instructive and fit into the general run of the Tinubu administration – power and discretion must flow from Tinubu. However, given the mantra of his presidential venture which is to renew hope in Nigeria for Nigerians across the country and the wider world, his success shall depend on a more constructive and wholistic style in information and media enterprise.
Building hope in the citizenry like Nigeria’s where successive generations of leadership have betrayed the people, is not a matter for casual attention or cherry-picking of factors and strategy, without careful consideration for their utility or otherwise. Rather, it is a process that demands the highest level of commitment to good governance by the leadership community with the president leading the charge.
Watching President Bola Tinubu during any of his addresses to the country leaves one with much food for thought. And just as well, he had come on board as a president with a loaded cache of presidential vision and personal credentials. His challenge now is to deliver on his promises through a media team who would transform his ideas into tangible deliverables for the citizenry. And that is where the leadership question in respect of his media team comes in, for as of now the leadership that will galvanise his media team into delivering the full measure of inspiration and answer questions that Nigerians needs answers, to is non-existent.
As presently constituted the critical elements in the Presidential media team comprise Bayo Onanuga who is Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Sunday Dare, Special Adviser on Media and Public Communications and recently appointed cross-over factor, Daniel Bwala, who is Special Adviser, Policy Communication. According to the current dispensation, these three now form the triumvirate for delivery of messages from the president to Nigerians.
An immediate observation from this scenario is the missing role of the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohamed Idris, whose portfolio is not only statutorily defined, but even offers more utility to President Bola Tinubu, given the mission of his administration to renew hope for Nigerians. For it may not be possible to renew the hope of Nigerians in the country without first facilitating their orientation accordingly. For, come to think of it, the Minister of Information and National Orientation remains the statutory head of the information management regime of the Tinubu administration.
The task before the president now is not just to tinker with rotating a few media assistants around so called titles, but work towards the consolidation of his information and media management model towards providing optimal inspiration and orientation to move the country to the next level which Nigerians expect from him. For while in the context of adopting a parochial presidential media team that may be fixated only on promoting his image, let him not forget that he remains fully responsible for the proclivities of the entire administration in running the country.
And that is why it is that, the earlier the primacy of the Minister of information and National Orientation, Mohamed Idris, is established as the real arrow head of the information and media management for the president and the administration, the better it will be for the country.
Join Daily Trust WhatsApp Community For Quick Access To News and Happenings Around You.