Premium News
What Oseni does is not new in global journalism.
Internationally respected anchors like Christiane Amanpour, Stephen Sackur of BBC’s Hardtalk, and CNN’s Jake Tapper are known for grilling world leaders, cutting through rhetoric, and demanding evidence.
But in Nigeria, where political arrogance often thrives on unchallenged narratives, such firmness is often mistaken for hostility.
The real issue is not Oseni’s tone; it is the fragile ego of the Nigerian political elite.
Many public officials in this country have not learned to separate personal pride from public responsibility.
They come into interviews expecting journalists to worship them, not question them. They treat tough questions as insults instead of opportunities to clarify their positions.
Some even demand that journalists send questions in advance, a practice that undermines spontaneity and shields them from accountability.
So, when they meet someone like Oseni, who refuses to play by those rules, they interpret professionalism as provocation.
But journalism, by its nature, is meant to discomfort the comfortable and comfort the afflicted. That is its moral duty.
It is not about how warmly a question is phrased, but how truthfully it is pursued. If a public servant cannot handle inquiry, then perhaps they have no business serving the public.
