A former presidential aide, Phrank Shaibu, has criticised the Presidency over what he described as misplaced priorities, accusing it of focusing on public relations issues while Nigerians grapple with hunger, insecurity and economic hardship.
Shaibu, who served as Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, faulted the Presidency for issuing an official explanation on photographs showing President Bola Tinubu dining in Paris, rather than addressing pressing national challenges.
In a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday, Shaibu said Nigerians were more concerned about leadership and governance than details of who the President dined with abroad.
According to him, the country is currently battling worsening insecurity, rising food prices, collapsing businesses and widespread economic distress, yet the Presidency chose to brief the public on matters he described as trivial.
“At a time when communities in Niger State and other parts of the country are under attack and families can barely afford basic food items, the Presidency is explaining camera phones, image quality and photo editing,” he said.
Shaibu described the development as “tone-deafness in power,” adding that Nigerians did not ask for explanations about a Paris menu but for decisive leadership in addressing the nation’s emergencies.
He also dismissed the Presidency’s outrage over claims that the photographs were generated by artificial intelligence or manipulated, arguing that public skepticism was a natural consequence of eroded trust.
According to him, an administration frequently entangled in controversies over questionable or disputed documents could not feign surprise when its actions were subjected to scrutiny.
“When credibility is damaged, doubt follows naturally. Instead of interrogating why public trust has collapsed, the Presidency is attacking Nigerians and the media,” Shaibu stated.
He maintained that the real issue was not the authenticity of a photograph but what he described as a distortion of leadership priorities, insisting that while Nigeria was facing multiple crises, the government appeared more concerned with image management.
Shaibu urged the Presidency to abandon what he termed “public relations theatrics” and focus on tackling hunger, insecurity and economic decline with urgency and humility.
He said such action represented the minimum expectation of Nigerians from those in power.
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