Media personality, Babajide Otitoju has criticised presidential aide Daniel Bwala over his recent interview with Mehdi Hasan, describing the encounter as a mistake.
Speaking on Issues With Jide on TVC News, Otitoju said Bwala himself promoted the interview ahead of time and even commended Hasan’s reputation as a strong interviewer.
According to Otitoju, Hasan is known as one of the best arguers in broadcast journalism who often takes full control of interviews.
Otitoju said Bwala appeared unprepared for the style of questioning he faced.
“He told his followers the interview was coming and even commended his courage for going before Mehdi Hasan,” Otitoju said.
He argued that Bwala may have seen the appearance as an opportunity to promote the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, but did not get the chance because the interviewer dominated the discussion.
Otitoju added that Hasan repeatedly confronted Bwala with some of his past comments about Tinubu, forcing him to respond to previous criticisms he had made before joining the government.
“He made a big mistake going head-to-head with Mehdi Hasan. He should have known he would not come out unscathed,” Otitoju said.
The TVC News host further described the exchange as a “brutal assault” and a “mental torture” for viewers, arguing that Bwala failed to achieve his objective of selling the policies and performance of the Tinubu administration during the interview.
“It was a brutal assault, it was a mental torture even for Nigerians watching,” he said.