ABUJA, Nigeria – Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has criticised Arise TV host Rufai Oseni after the media personality shared old videos in which Bwala made critical comments about Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.
The dispute began after Rufai posted an old video of Bwala on his official X handle in which the presidential aide reportedly questioned claims that Tinubu personally developed Lagos State and described the president as a “tax collector.”
Bwala responded by accusing Rufai of promoting what he described as hate, vitriol and fake news, while alleging that the journalist's media activities were driven by financial interests and the engagement of supporters of Peter Obi.
“Barely one hour after my interview with @seunokin, a major spokesman for Peter Obi, @ruffydfire, whose fortune today relies on hate, vitriol and fake news peddled through his media outlets generating revenue from the ignorance and gullibility of a set of people has engaged in his X handle to troll and generate revenue,” Bwala wrote.
He further accused Rufai of using his platform to generate followers, traffic and viewership by promoting what he described as divisive content.
However, shortly after Bwala's response, Rufai shared another old video featuring the presidential aide, this time focusing on comments Bwala allegedly made about Vice President Kashim Shettima during an appearance on Channels Television.
In the video, Bwala reportedly linked Shettima's tenure as governor of Borno State to security concerns surrounding the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls.
Bwala was quoted as alleging that a security report had warned against allowing students preparing for examinations to remain in an area considered unsafe, claiming that the report was ignored before the Chibok girls were abducted.
He also reportedly referred to the discovery of a suspected mastermind of the Madalla bombing at the Borno State Government Lodge during Shettima's tenure.
When asked in the old interview whether he was proud of Shettima, Bwala reportedly responded: “No, I’m not.”
The exchange has sparked a wider debate on social media over political consistency, with Rufai highlighting Bwala's previous statements while the presidential aide accuses the broadcaster of selectively using old comments to attack the Tinubu administration.
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