A member of the House of Representatives, Solomon Bob, has lashed out at President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, over comments suggesting that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has been “adequately compensated” by the current administration.
Bob described the presidential aide as “an insignificant and attention-seeking operator, punching above his weight,” insisting that Bwala’s remark amounted to a “malicious narrative distortion.”
The lawmaker, who represents Abua/Odual/Ahoada East Federal Constituency of Rivers State, was reacting to comments made by Bwala during a television programme on Friday, where the presidential aide also implied that Wike was frustrating the ability of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, to govern effectively.
In a statement issued on Sunday in Port Harcourt and made available to journalists in Abuja, Bob, a known political ally of Wike, said Bwala’s comments were “cheeky, unwarranted, and stemmed from premeditated bile.”
The statement partly read, “You could see that he deliberately pivoted from the question to talk about the minister having been ‘adequately compensated,’ whatever that means.
“He doesn’t understand the minister’s contribution to this administration. Clearly, he operates on the fringes. And sadly, he leaves the impression that he sees public office as a gravy train ride, but public office is about service delivery, not adequate compensation.
“Next, he cheekily downplayed the minister’s generally acknowledged superlative performance in the FCT by putting it down merely to exiting the Treasury Single Account.”
Bob countered Bwala’s assertion by arguing that the decision for the FCT Administration to exit the Treasury Single Account was itself initiated by Wike.
“Exiting the TSA itself was the minister’s ingenious idea. The president’s acceptance underlines his confidence in the minister’s ability to deliver. That confidence is rooted in his strong record as Rivers governor, for which even President Buhari honoured him — and Buhari was never enamoured of Wike”, he stated.
The lawmaker further accused Bwala of poor judgment for suggesting that Wike was interfering with Governor Fubara’s administration.
He continued, “He betrayed his absolute lack of judgment by implying that the minister is impeding Governor Fubara from governing.
“The manner of his comment is classic implication framing from a confused individual who dabbles into everything and all things, including those beyond his competence and job description.”
Bob also faulted the presidential aide for projecting personal sentiments as official presidential positions. He stressed that Bwala was not speaking on behalf of President Tinubu.
He further stated, “He denigrates his office by infusing his public comments with his own sentiments and biases and passing them off as the president’s.
“The president knows who bears responsibility for the situation in Rivers.
“Mr Bwala doesn’t really speak for the president, by the way. That’s not his remit, and he is way down the pecking order of presidential spokesmen.”
The APC lawmaker further suggested that Bwala’s comments may have been driven by lingering bitterness over the outcome of the 2023 presidential election.
“Mr Bwala enthusiastically ran his mouth and spoke out of tune because Minister Wike got Atiku Abubakar on toast. Atiku was his boss until he jumped ship.
“Obviously, he is still overcome with a sense of what might have been, despite grovelling back to get a job in a government made possible by people like the minister while he was engaged in typical self-serving rants elsewhere”, Bob added.
Bob urged the presidential aide to focus on his official responsibilities, adding, “Despite his pretensions, he doesn’t convince many people that he has the ingredients to function in that capacity.”