REJOINDER

By Bwacha Media Team

The attention of the Bwacha Media Team has been drawn to the rather desperate and unnecessarily combative rejoinder issued by the APC Taraba State Media Directorate in response to our publication concerning comments attributed to the State APC Chairman, Alhaji Abubakar Bawa, regarding the Deputy Governorship position and the Mumuye people.

Ordinarily, we would have ignored the lengthy attempt at media gymnastics. However, since the APC Media Directorate has chosen to accuse us of “lies,” “blackmail,” “fabrication,” “cheap propaganda” and “desperation,” while demanding evidence, we are more than willing to provide the clarity they seek.

For the avoidance of doubt, the statement in question was made during an interview involving the APC State Chairman on RFI Hausa Service on Sunday, 16 August 2026, at about 7:00am.

The APC Media Directorate demanded a video as evidence. But this was a radio interview, not a television programme. Therefore, the relevant evidence is the audio recording or broadcast record of the interview.

So, let the APC Media Directorate produce the complete RFI Hausa interview and allow Tarabans to listen for themselves.

If the Chairman never made the statement attributed to him, the recording will vindicate him.

But if he made the statement, then this entire rejoinder accusing the Bwacha Media Team of fabrication, blackmail and propaganda will collapse under the weight of its own contradiction.

More importantly, let us be clear about what this controversy is actually about.

Nobody is arguing that the office of Deputy Governor is a traditional stool. That is a deliberate distortion of the issue.

The issue is the political implication and interpretation of the Chairman’s remarks concerning the Mumuye people and the process of selecting a Deputy Governorship candidate.

The Mumuye people are intelligent and politically conscious enough to listen to what was said and draw their own conclusions. They do not need the APC Media Directorate to tell them what they heard, how they should interpret it, or whether they have a right to be concerned about it.

If the Chairman’s actual position is different from the interpretation of his remarks, there is a simple solution:

Let him clarify his statement. That should not be difficult.

Curiously, the APC Media Directorate devoted several paragraphs to accusing the Bwacha Media Team of lying, yet failed to answer the most fundamental question:

DID ALHAJI ABUBAKAR BAWA MAKE THE STATEMENT DURING THE RFI HAUSA INTERVIEW OR DID HE NOT?

The attempt to introduce the alleged statement involving General T.Y. Danjuma into this matter is equally irrelevant. We are not discussing General Danjuma in this rejoinder. We are discussing the statement attributed to your Chairman.

If the APC Media Directorate truly believes in responsible communication, then let it address the substance of the allegation instead of attacking the messenger.

Political disagreements are normal. But when a public statement becomes controversial, the responsible thing to do is to clarify the statement not manufacture a cloud of accusations around those who reported it.

Until the Chairman himself provides a clear explanation of what he said during the RFI Hausa interview, the APC Media Directorate’s attempt to bury the matter under words such as “lies,” “propaganda,” “blackmail” and “desperation” amounts to nothing more than a distraction from the real issue.

Produce the recording. Let Tarabans listen. Let the facts speak.

Signed:

Bwacha Media Team