PDP chieftain says exchange crossed the line from tough journalism to “public ambush” after viral confrontation over Bwala’s past criticism of President Tinubu.

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Segun Showunmi, has criticised journalist Mehdi Hasan over what he described as a hostile and unprofessional interview with presidential aide Daniel Bwala on Al Jazeera.

The contentious exchange took place on Head to Head, a programme aired by the international broadcaster, where Hasan repeatedly pressed Bwala over past remarks in which he had criticised President Bola Tinubu before later defecting from the opposition to join the administration.

Reacting to the interview in a post on X on Sunday, Showunmi argued that the tone and style of the questioning crossed the line from rigorous journalism into what he termed a “public ambush.”

“Hostility is not journalism,” Showunmi wrote. “There is a clear difference between tough journalism and outright hostility. One serves the public interest, the other serves the ego of the interviewer.”

According to the PDP stalwart, the interview was dominated by interruptions and questions framed more as traps than attempts to elicit clear explanations from the presidential aide. He said Bwala’s responses were repeatedly cut short as the host pursued confrontational lines of questioning.

During the programme, Hasan confronted Bwala with previous comments in which he allegedly described Tinubu as corrupt and unfit for leadership. When Bwala denied making some of the statements, the journalist played video clips appearing to show him making similar remarks.

The moment quickly circulated across social media, drawing widespread reactions and sparking mockery from critics who accused Bwala of contradicting his earlier positions.

Hasan also questioned the presidential aide on Nigeria’s worsening security challenges, citing reports from international rights organisations including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. Observers noted that Bwala struggled to rebut some of the figures and claims presented during the exchange.

Showunmi, however, maintained that the interview focused excessively on Bwala’s past political comments rather than exploring broader national issues.

He argued that the platform could have been better used to question the administration’s policy direction, including its plans for economic restructuring, tackling insecurity, and implementing governance reforms.