Daniel Bwala, special adviser on policy communication to President Bola Tinubu, has dismissed recent criticisms of Nigeria by Kemi Badenoch, a UK politician and leader of the Conservative Party, describing them as politically driven attempts to gain favour within her party.
Last week, Badenoch compared the UK to Nigeria during a speech about governance, stating she did not want the consequences of “terrible governments like Nigeria” to manifest in Britain. Her remarks, made while promoting the Conservative Party as the solution to Britain’s challenges, sparked controversy.
Speaking on a Channels Television program, Bwala argued that Badenoch’s comments would not negatively affect Nigeria’s international relations or its attractiveness to investors.
“I don’t think it would have an effect because she’s not the government in power. Usually, these international relationships or collaborations are dealings between governments,” Bwala said.
“Because she’s not the government in power, it will not have any effect. Secondly, because she’s a Nigerian, investors will be smart enough to assess what she’s saying, whether it is born out of rhetoric.”
While acknowledging Badenoch’s accomplishments in the UK, Bwala accused her of exploiting populism by capitalizing on public discontent and anger. “The only problem we have with Kemi, I think, is the rhetoric because Kemi belongs to the right base in the United Kingdom, which is what you see in this populism around the world—that you can deepen your support system if you can feed off of the anger of the people,” Bwala said.
“So she’s building a rhetoric of denigrating Nigeria, demarketing Nigeria, so she can probably win the acceptance or acceptation of the rights in her party.”
Bwala also contrasted Badenoch’s approach to that of UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who he noted refrains from using India’s societal issues as a platform for political gain despite his Indian heritage.
“He has never used that as a weapon to promote what he believed to be a departure from what is likely to be believed as hereditary or history of the Indian people, but she has always denigrated Nigeria,” Bwala added. Bwala’s remarks highlight ongoing concerns about the implications of Badenoch’s rhetoric and its potential impact on perceptions of Nigeria.