Presidency slams Ndume over comments on Tinubu’s appointments

Ndume made the comments on Arise TV’s Prime Time, stating that the appointments do not reflect the diversity mandated by section 14(3) of the 1999 Constitution.

In response, Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, described Ndume’s criticism as “hypocritical” and “selective perception.”

Onanuga accused Ndume of ignoring key facts for political theatrics, pointing out that two of Ndume’s kinsmen were recently appointed to top positions in the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

“Senator Ali Ndume’s latest outburst on TV about so-called ‘lopsided appointments’ by President Tinubu reeks of hypocrisy and selective perception,” Onanuga said. ”

While the Borno senator grandstanded as a moral authority on equity, he forgot to tell his interviewer that two of his kinsmen featured in recent NNPC Limited top appointments.”

Onanuga dismissed Ndume’s accusations as part of a pattern of “headline-chasing” and “rabble-rousing,” alleging that the Senator often makes unfounded statements that are later disproven.

The presidential media aide reaffirmed President Tinubu’s commitment to inclusive governance, stating that appointments under the current administration are guided by merit, integrity, and national balance.

“The President’s appointments are—and will continue to be—based on merit, geographical spread, and a demonstrable capacity to serve the Nigerian people, not Ndume’s cherry-picked tribal arithmetic,” Onanuga said, advising Ndume to “elevate public discourse” and desist from what was described as “misinformation and baseless criticism.”