By Dr. Abdul Mahmud
“It was the spectacle of a man trying to escape the shadow of his own words.
Again and again Bwala was confronted with statements he had made in the past. Statements that sharply criticised the same government he now defends. Each time he retreated into a familiar refuge. “Context matters”, he said. The circumstances were different. The statements must be understood within a broader setting. But the problem with his defence was painfully obvious. Context cannot erase conviction. When context becomes the permanent shelter of argument, it begins to look less like explanation and more like evasion. In that moment Bwala resembled a bat caught in sudden light. Disoriented. Bedraggled. Flapping. Searching for a place to hide. The audience greeted his performance with derision.
The exchange would have passed as an ordinary media confrontation if it did not illuminate something larger about Nigeria’s new culture of activism. What we witnessed was not simply the embarrassment of a presidential spokesperson. It was a glimpse into the changing meaning of activism itself. In the past activism in Nigeria was rooted in sacrifice. It was a dangerous work, and a dangerous thing to venture into activism. Activists confronted military regimes. They faced prison, exile and constant surveillance by spooks. They organised protests knowing that the state could respond with violence. Their voices were not pathways to power. They were acts of defiance against power.
Today the landscape has changed. Activism has become the stage of compulsive self-exhibition. Television panels, social media platforms, viral clips and endless commentary have created a new theatre of performative activism. In this theatre, a new class of public critics has emerged. They are sharp, articulate and permanently visible. Their voices dominate timelines and studio discussions. Criticisms have become their principal craft, and outrage a form of political currency. The more forceful the condemnation of those in power, the greater the public attention it attracts. A scathing remark travels quickly across digital platforms. A carefully worded rebuke becomes a viral moment. Fame is manufactured in real time, and the speed of that fame often depends on how loudly one speaks against the government of the day. But beneath much of this spectacle lies a quieter and more calculating ambition. Many of these critics are not merely challenging power. They are positioning themselves before it. Visibility becomes the signal to power”…
Abdul Mahmud is a Nigerian lawyer, social critic, columnist, human rights advocate, knowledge worker, essayist, poet, and former Students’ union leader.
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