Why President Tinubu Reversed NTA Appointments

MORE facts have emerged on why President Bola Tinubu reversed the appointment of Rotimi Pedro as the new director general of the NTA and reinstated Salihu Dembos, who had earlier been removed from the position.
It was gathered that the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, who oversees the state-owned broadcasting outfit, was unaware of the changes until his attention was drawn to the announcement, already circulating in the media.
The minister was said to had been embarrased by the appointment, allegedly influence by a presidential aide on the allegation of incompetence, more so as Dembos and some of his management colleagues were at the time, part of the federal government’s delegation to to a three-day citizens’ engagement tour of Enugu and Ebonyi states, led by Idris himself.
Upon his return from the tour, the minister was said to have sought an audience with the President to raise his concerns about the manner in the changes were effected.
According to Premium Times: “The minister also requested the permission of Tinubu to investigate the situation at the NTA, especially the allegations upon which the leadership changes were made.”
A top presidential insider told the medium that the minister’s findings showed that the allegations were “spurious” and had been “fabricated by interest groups to facilitate the capture of the agency;”
after reviewing the minister’s report, the President immediately ordered the reversal of the appointments, directing that the sacked officials be reinstated.
Consequently, presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, announced in a statement on Tuesday, September 2, that the President had directed the recall of Salihu Abdullahi Dembos as the Director General of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), who briefly vacated the post following some management changes in the agency.”
The statement added: “Dembos was appointed DG of the TV network by Tinubu in October 2023. He will now return to complete his three-year tenure.
“The President similarly directed the recall of Ayo Adewuyi, the Executive Director of News, to complete his three-year tenure, which ends in 2027. Adewuyi was appointed by Tinubu in 2024.
“The new directive effectively reversed the previously announced appointments of a director general, executive director of news, executive director of marketing and managing director of NTA Enterprises.”