Reuben Abati’s show of shame

Reuben Abati, the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, to President Goodluck Jonathan has increasingly become inept in handling his sensitive task as the Media and Publicity adviser to the president with his childish and silly gaffes.

His most recent error, although small would make Nigeria and Jonathan a laughing stock globally. On Saturday 11 October, in Jonathan’s congratulatory message to Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi, the co-recipient of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize, Abati and his boss referred to Satyarthi as a female.

Many Nigerians did not take note of this but a foreigner called my attention to it, terming the presidency a ‘Big Joke’. One would have expected Abati and his team to search the person called Kailash Satyarthi and not assume that ‘He’ is a ‘She’ because Malala is a she.

The statement has been published widely by Nigeria’s media outfit most of whom also do not know Satyarthi is a ‘He’. Abati’s statement on behalf of his boss read: “He urged others with grievances around the world to emulate her method of non-violent protests,” Jonathan referring to Satyarthi.

It would be recalled that it was Abati and his team that sent the pictures of Jonathan, Modu Sheriff (alleged Boko Haram sponsor) along with President Idriss Deby at the presidential palace in Chad. They thought they were laundering the image of the president until the backlash on social media.

Abati knowing that he had to defend his boss wrote on his Twitter page that the picture was taken at the airport, when even a blind man could tell otherwise. “The pictures which formed the basis of the bogus allegation were taken at the airport. Sheriff’s presence was not at President Jonathan’s instance,” Abati tweeted.

One would have thought it wise that he kept shut and took the barrage of attacks that came his way. Many more gaffes have been committed in the past many of which we know but the question is, if the people at the top cannot get small information right, how can they lead the people right?

Abati and his crew should get their acts together or quit the presidency. It is truly shameful and embarrassing.

By Debo Seun