by Femi Adefemiwa
The visit of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to Jos on Thursday, April 1, was nothing short of a drama, one that was, ab initio, an embarrassing misstep. The engagement with the victims of the unfortunate recent killings in Angwan Rukuba, Jos North Local Government Area, took place at the Yakubu Gowon Airport, Hyeipang, Plateau State, which is about a 30-minute highway drive to Jos.
Granted, the President could not visit earlier due to his prior commitment to King Charles III’s invitation for a Royal State Visit. That, in itself, is understandable. But what defies understanding is how the eventual visit, when it finally happened, was handled with such a lack of care, dignity, and basic coordination. One would have expected something measured, solemn, and befitting of the gravity of the moment. What we saw instead was a troubling display of poor judgment.
First, the visit felt like an afterthought, hurriedly inserted into the President’s schedule, seemingly on the way to another engagement in Ogun State. There was no sense of deliberate intention, no evidence that this was a priority commensurate with the tragedy at hand.
Second, it amounted to an irreparable disrespect to the memories of those who lost their lives and, by extension, a painful affront to their families. Moments like this demand sensitivity, not optics.
Third, and perhaps most disturbing, was the decision to bring wounded victims out of their hospital beds to a makeshift tent at the Airport, merely for the President to meet them. That single act calls into question the sincerity of the President’s professed sympathy. It reduced real human suffering to a staged display. Such a caricature does not honor victims, it diminishes them.
To the state government and other stakeholders who had to endure that awkward spectacle, one can only extend sympathy.
At the heart of this failure lies the President’s public relations machinery. The handlers of his image are doing him a grave disservice. The explanation issued by the Presidency, rather than mitigating the situation, only exposed the shallowness of thought and the absence of strategic clarity among those tasked with managing his public perception.
Mr. Bayo Onanuga and his team, alongside the political advisers as well as the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, must urgently put their house in order. The President must not be continually portrayed in ways that diminish both his office and the dignity of the nation, all because of poor coordination and tone deaf execution.
Leadership is not only about presence, but it is also about how that presence is felt. On this occasion, the opportunity to lead with empathy and honor was lost, and the responsibility for that loss is clear.
Femi Adefemiwa is a global Nigerian, public communicator, and advocate for good governance. He is the author of “Remote Working From Africa: A Practical Guide” and writes from the United States of America. He can be reached at jerome.adefemiwa@gmail.com.
