Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has denied ever describing the President as an illegitimate president while he was in the opposition, challenging anyone who has evidence of such a statement to produce it.
Bwala clarified during an interview on the KAA Truths podcast monitored by The News Chronicle, where he was confronted with some of his past comments and his political transition from opposition politics to the Tinubu administration.
The presidential aide said activist Aisha Yesufu, rather than himself, was the person who described Tinubu as an illegitimate president.
“Nobody in Nigeria, even the opposition, including Kenneth Okonkwo, called the President illegitimate. It is only Aisha, and that’s because she is ignorant and doesn’t know what the law is,” Bwala said.
He argued that the Supreme Court’s final determination of the 2023 presidential election should put an end to arguments over the legitimacy of Tinubu’s presidency.
According to him, once an electoral dispute has gone through the judicial process and the Supreme Court has delivered its final judgment, all parties are expected to accept the decision.
“Even if a person won an election that is flawed, and that election is litigated to the highest court of the land whose decision is final in all authorities and they said that the election was valid, from that moment you should back away,” he said.
When asked directly whether he had ever called Tinubu illegitimate, Bwala responded: “I never called the President illegitimate.”
He then challenged those making the allegation to provide evidence.
“If you have it, pull it out,” Bwala said.
The interview also revisited an earlier appearance by Bwala on Arise TV, where he was accused of refusing to refer to Tinubu as president-elect and instead using the expression “president-select.”
Bwala maintained his position during the KAA Truths interview, insisting on his account of what he said at the time.
The presidential aide, who was previously associated with the opposition Peoples Democratic Party before joining the All Progressives Congress, has faced repeated scrutiny over comments attributed to him during his time in opposition.
His KAA Truths appearance has since generated fresh attention, particularly over his denial that he ever questioned the legitimacy of Tinubu’s presidency.
