The All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council has removed some of its spokespersons following the controversy surrounding the failed live television demonstration of Nigeria’s 112 emergency number by one of its officials, Alwan Hassan.
The development comes amid widespread public criticism of the incident, which has raised questions about the effectiveness of Nigeria’s emergency response system and attracted criticism of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, announced the decision on Wednesday, stating that only three officials are now authorised to speak on behalf of the APC Presidential Campaign Council.
The recognised spokespersons are the Director-General of the council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari; the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake; and the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris.
Hassan had sparked the controversy during his appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Tuesday, where he challenged the programme’s anchor, Seun Okinbaloye, to dial Nigeria’s 112 emergency number to demonstrate its effectiveness.
During the programme, Hassan described the emergency number as one of the achievements of the APC-led administration, explaining that it was designed to connect Nigerians with emergency response centres during medical emergencies, security threats, road accidents and other distress situations.
However, the demonstration ended in embarrassment after repeated attempts by Okinbaloye to connect to the emergency line failed.
Despite the unsuccessful attempts, Hassan maintained that the service was operational, suggesting that a network problem might have been responsible for the failure.
The incident generated widespread reactions, with opposition parties using the development to question the administration’s claims about improvements in public infrastructure and service delivery.
The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) particularly condemned the failed demonstration, describing it as a national embarrassment and accusing the Tinubu administration of placing greater emphasis on propaganda and public relations than delivering functional public services.
In a statement issued on Wednesday by its National Campaign Council spokesperson, Dr Chiogo Constance Ikokwu, the party said the incident exposed the weaknesses in Nigeria’s emergency response infrastructure.
The opposition party argued that Nigerians should be able to access emergency assistance without difficulties, particularly during road accidents, violent attacks and medical emergencies.
It also criticised the government’s response to the incident, insisting that authorities should address the challenges affecting the emergency service rather than attribute the failure to network problems.
According to the NDC, governance should be measured by the services available to ordinary citizens rather than claims made by government officials during television appearances.
The party further accused the administration of concentrating on projecting its achievements while failing to adequately address insecurity, poorly equipped hospitals, unreliable public infrastructure, institutional weaknesses and the rising cost of living.
The controversy has now resulted in an internal restructuring of the APC Presidential Campaign Council’s media team, with four previously appointed spokespersons losing their positions.
At the inauguration of the campaign council, five individuals were appointed as spokespersons, with Dele Alake serving as the lead spokesperson.
The other appointees were Alwan Hassan, Ayobami Oyalowo, Kemi Asekun-Shittu and Adamu Fanda.
However, following the latest directive, only Abdulaziz Yari, Dele Alake and Mohammed Idris are recognised as authorised voices of the council.
The development comes as the ruling APC intensifies efforts to defend President Tinubu’s performance ahead of the 2027 general election, with opposition parties increasingly challenging the administration over the economy, insecurity and public service delivery.
Nigeria’s 112 emergency number is designed to provide a centralised channel through which citizens can access emergency services, including the police, ambulance services and other relevant response agencies.
However, the failed television demonstration has renewed concerns about the reliability of the service and the country’s broader emergency response infrastructure.
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