Adedayo Showemimo
The revised composition of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) may have addressed some of the concerns generated by its initial list, but the controversy surrounding the placement of certain political communicators is far from settled. Particularly striking is the treatment of Festus Keyamo, SAN, and Otunba Biodun Ajiboye, whose contributions to the political communication surrounding President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, before and after the 2023 presidential election, invite a closer examination of the criteria employed in constituting the council.
Their eventual inclusion may have corrected an omission, but it has not entirely resolved questions about recognition, experience and the distribution of leadership responsibilities.
For Keyamo, the issue goes beyond mere inclusion. Here is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, a two-time minister, a former Director of Public Affairs and Chief Spokesperson of the 2023 APC Presidential Campaign Council, and one of the most recognisable defenders of Tinubu’s political project. His communication style is unmistakable: fiery, spontaneous, intellectually assertive and rarely intimidated by hostile questioning. His contributions to the political debates surrounding Tinubu’s candidacy and administration are well documented.
Against that background, placing a figure of Keyamo’s experience outside the top leadership of the Directorate of Media and Strategic Communications raises legitimate questions about whether his previous responsibilities and public communication record received adequate consideration. To his admirers, such a placement would appear less like a recognition of his experience and more like an inexplicable relegation.
The case of Otunba Biodun Ajiboye presents an equally intriguing, if somewhat different, dimension. His initial omission from the council was particularly surprising given his record of consistent political advocacy. As Assistant Director of Media and Publicity in the 2023 Presidential Campaign Council, Ajiboye was actively involved in defending Tinubu’s candidacy.
More significantly, his public engagement did not end with the announcement of the election results. Long after the campaign machinery had completed its assignment, Ajiboye remained visible in national political conversations, appearing on television, responding to opposition narratives, interpreting government policies and defending the administration’s positions.
Among those now occupying leadership positions within the directorate, his sustained public visibility since 2023 makes him a figure whose contributions warrant serious consideration.
It is therefore understandable that his exclusion initially generated perceptions of political victimisation, betrayal and a failure to recognise loyalty. Those perceptions, however, should be distinguished from established facts; the internal considerations behind the original appointments have not been publicly explained.
Nevertheless, the controversy recalls the familiar, rather cynical description of politics as an unfair game, sometimes said to be more suited to demons than saints. It is an exaggerated expression, perhaps, but one that captures the frustration of those who believe that years of commitment and visible service do not always translate into institutional recognition.
In Ajiboye’s case, the question is not whether loyalty automatically guarantees an appointment, but whether a demonstrable record of communication experience and sustained engagement was adequately weighed.
The revised list has now brought both men into the formal campaign structure, but their inclusion also highlights a larger question about how political organisations recognise and deploy experienced communicators. Campaign leadership requires more than visibility or personal loyalty; it demands judgment, credibility, coordination, institutional memory and the ability to explain difficult policies to diverse audiences.
Both Keyamo and Ajiboye have public records that can be assessed against those requirements. Their appointments should therefore be examined not merely as political rewards, but in terms of the responsibilities assigned to them and the contributions they will be expected to make.
For Ajiboye, whose professional journey spans advertising, telecommunications, media, culture, public administration and political communication, the development adds another chapter to a career built around the power of narrative.
For Keyamo, whose public life has combined legal advocacy, ministerial responsibilities and frontline political communication, it raises questions about the relationship between experience and formal campaign hierarchy.
The revised PCC list may have partially settled the issue of their participation, but it leaves open a more consequential debate: how should a political organisation balance loyalty, proven experience, individual temperament and strategic competence when deciding who leads its communication machinery?