By Passman Akpos
The Presidential Spokesperson on Policy Communication to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Daniel Bwala, has accused Al Jazeera of selectively editing his recent interview in a manner that allegedly created a misleading narrative and triggered widespread criticism on social media.
The interview, conducted by journalist Mehdi Hasan as part of the programme “Head to Head with Daniel Bwala,” quickly went viral online, drawing backlash from some Nigerians who described Bwala’s responses as embarrassing and poorly handled.
Reacting to the controversy during a discussion with On-Air Personality Daddy Freeze, Bwala insisted that the version circulating online does not accurately reflect the full conversation.
“There is a fact that was incorrectly portrayed and has formed the basis of many opinions online, which was unfortunately pushed by Al Jazeera,” Bwala said. “I asked them to put the record straight.”
According to him, the interview was conducted on February 11, 2026, and lasted approximately one hour and twenty minutes. He maintained that he answered every question directly and did not evade any issues raised during the conversation.“The interview was conducted properly.
Questions were asked, and I answered them. I didn’t deny anything,” he stated.
Bwala, however, claimed that when the network uploaded the interview on March 5, only 49 minutes of the discussion were released, leaving out nearly 20 minutes of the original recording. He further alleged that an even shorter eight-minute version later circulated online, which he said was edited in a way that highlighted certain remarks while removing key context.
According to the presidential spokesperson, Al Jazeera had initially assured him that the complete interview would first be aired on television before being posted online.
“Their excuse was that trending matters around Israel, Iran, and the US affected the airing,” he said. “But even so, they went ahead and uploaded the edited version on YouTube.”
Bwala stressed that releasing the full interview is necessary to avoid misinterpretations and restore proper context to his statements.
“It’s very important that they publish the full video,” he said, warning that selective editing of interviews could easily distort public understanding and fuel unnecessary controversy.
