Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State says some of the persons who hailed late President Muhammadu Buhari while in office, turned around to mock him after he exited power.
Buhari, a former head of state, was elected President in 2015, and served two terms of four years each.
Speaking on sycophancy at the 2nd Raymond Dokpesi Diamond Lecture organised by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) in Abuja, Sule said he witnessed firsthand how politicians flattered Buhari while he was in office, only to disown him after his exit from power.
“By being a governor, I have seen what sycophancy can do. I have seen people actually sit in the presence of President (Muhammadu) Buhari to tell him, ‘Oh, you are the best ever. Nobody can do this better.’
“But the minute Buhari left government, they started saying, ‘Oh, he was one of the worst presidents we had ever seen.’ These are the same people but different moments. That is what sycophancy is all about,” PUNCH quoted Sule to have said.
The governor, who was honoured with an NIPR award and fellowship at the event, said he admired the late media mogul, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, for his courage in establishing the country’s first private radio and television stations during the military era.
Sule described it as a time when “nearly everything was controlled by government.”
“We are here to celebrate an icon of media. Dokpesi was not afraid to speak truth to power, even during difficult times,” he added.
In his remarks, NIPR President, Dr Ike Neliaku, appreciated the Nasarawa governor for gifting the institute a parcel of land to establish the first global PR varsity in the state.
Neliaku also announced that the project is presently at an advanced stage.
According to Neliaku, the new institution will serve as a “knowledge hub” for grooming ethical communicators, transformational leaders, and development-oriented thinkers — aimed at bridging the gap between policy and practice in Nigeria’s public relations landscape.