By Bayo Davids<\/p>\n
The Special Assistant on Public Communications to the Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, Mr Phrank Shaibu, has chided the BBC over its fact-check report wherein it stated that there was no evidence to show that President Bola Tinubu\u2019s Chicago State University was forged.<\/p>\n
Shaibu in a statement on Wednesday described the BBC report as a hatchet job, adding that the outrage it had solicited from the generality of Nigerians was enough evidence to show that the BBC goofed.<\/p>\n
Atiku\u2019s aide noted that report is part of President Tinubu’s administration’s propaganda program.<\/p>\n
He said, \u201cSometime last week when the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) issued a final warning to Arise News TV, we pointed out that the Tinubu administration was on the verge of launching a full-blown propaganda and also intimidating \u2018uncooperative\u2019 media houses into discrediting and downplaying the CSU scandal. Sadly, we never imagined that it would be the BBC that would become the willing tool.”<\/p>\n
Shaibu described as unconscionable, appalling, and preposterous that in this current information age, a foreign medium of repute could try to allegedly bamboozle Nigerians with a jaundiced report when the details are clear for everyone to see.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are not ignorant of the machinations of the BBC and its bias towards the current government. Unfortunately, the BBC is not upholding the same standards as they would uphold in the UK where a Prime Minister was forced out of office for hosting a party during COVID-19. In 2009, columnist Mehdi Hasan wrote in the New Statesman that the BBC was biased \u2018towards power and privilege, tradition and orthodoxy.’, Shaibu added.<\/p>\n
The statement read in part \u201cIt is no wonder that in the last one year, the only news medium that was given exclusive access to interview Tinubu was the BBC. It is sickening that the BBC has decided to surrender its platform to a man who was accused of illegal drug trafficking in the United States.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the so-called fact-check report, the BBC decided to bury in the last paragraphs the fact that Tinubu claimed to have attended Government College, Lagos in 1970 when the school was established in 1974. Why didn\u2019t these so-called fact-checkers reflect it on their headline?<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is the essence of the report when it failed to uncover the most critical questions? If this report was aimed at fact-checking, it should have mentioned the year the certificate was obtained by Tinubu from CSU and if the one he submitted to INEC is the same one he received from CSU.<\/p>\n
\u201cTinubu said at Chatham House that he had received a replacement from CSU when the school said in unambiguous terms that he had not done so. What was the date he applied for his INEC replacement certificate from CSU, and when was it issued to him?<\/p>\n
Atiku’s aide alleged that the BBC’s investigation was carried out with a predetermined goal, which was to clear Tinubu.<\/p>\n
Shaibu called on the BBC and other fact-checkers to be more circumspect, adding that their job was too sensitive to entertain errors.<\/p>\n
Atiku\u2019s aide who advised media organizations to invest more in investigative journalism noted that
\n\u201cIf the BBC had invested in proper investigative journalism, it would have been the one uncovering some of Tinubu\u2019s scandals instead of relying on Atiku for information on Tinubu\u2019s certificates.”<\/p>\n
In a related development, Shaibu also lambasted President Tinubu for holding just one cabinet meeting since taking office 135 days ago.<\/p>\n
He described it as ironic that Tinubu, who has the largest cabinet in Nigeria\u2019s history, had decided not to meet with them.<\/p>\n
Atiku\u2019s aide said, \u201cTinubu is not ready for governance. After appointing 48 ministers \u2013 the highest in history \u2013 he has decided not to be meeting with them. This contravenes Section 148(2) of the 1999 Constitution, which expressly provides that the President shall hold regular meetings with the Vice President and ministers to determine domestic and foreign policies of the government.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is bad enough that a man who claimed he would hit the ground running from day one took over 60 days to name all his ministers and took 84 days to inaugurate them. Even now, he has held only one cabinet meeting since the inauguration of the cabinet. For a man who has been gallivanting all over the place purportedly in search of foreign investors, it is laughable that he cannot even meet with his team at home. Meanwhile, concerned Nigerians are asking #WhereIsTinubu?”.<\/p>\n
By Bayo Davids The Special Assistant on Public Communications to the Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar, Mr Phrank Shaibu, has chided the BBC over…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":108545,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-108544","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"\n