A Nigerian public relations practitioner, Yushau A. Shuaib, has petitioned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, over what he described as “unjust, humiliating, and deeply distressing” treatment he suffered at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru.
Shuaib said he was purportedly suspended from the Senior Executive Course (SEC) 47, over his “harmless” articles supporting President Tinubu’s Digital and Blue Economy agenda.
In the petition titled; “Unjust Treatment at NIPSS Over Articles Supporting Digital and Blue Economy Reforms,” Shuaib, who is also the founder of PRNigeria and a recipient of World Golden Award of the International Public Relations Association (IPRA), accused the NIPSS of harassment, cyberbullying, and professional ostracisation, despite his full compliance with institutional guidelines and ethical publishing practices.
Shuaib said that following his suspension on May 2, 2025, he was asked to vacate the NIPSS premises immediately, adding that the abrupt action shocked his family and colleagues, who were left to speculate on the rationale, especially since all other participants remained in the programme.
According to Shuaib; “This petition sets the record straight and seeks to prevent false insinuations that could damage my reputation”.
Shuaib recounted that on October 28, 2024—shortly after receiving an international award in Belgrade—he was nominated by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) to participate in the prestigious SEC 47 course and disengaged from his company, ‘Image Merchants Promotion Ltd’, and joined the course in good faith.
He however said that on March 21, 2025, PRNigeria published a story titled; “NIPSS Goes Digital,” which Shuaib neither authored nor edited, adding that the article commended the institute’s transition to a paperless system and highlighted its alignment with the Tinubu’s digital transformation agenda.
Shuaib said that despite this positive coverage, he was issued a query by Barrister Nima Salman Mann, the Acting Director of Studies, and was subsequently pressured by Rear Admiral A.A. Mustapha, a Directing Staff to discard his initial written defence and submit a revised version dictated by them.
He further said that on April 7, 2025, he was summoned before a disciplinary panel, but was denied the opportunity to speak or present his case, adding that the panel relied exclusively on the rewritten response imposed by Rear Admiral Mustapha, rather than the original defence he earlier prepared.
Shuaib said that he was then issued a perplexing final warning letter—his first and only formal warning since the commencement of the programme, adding that other participants also faced disproportionate sanctions.
He said; “One was queried for commending initiatives of Governor Caleb Mutfwang during a vote of thanks at Government House Jos, another for arriving late after a family emergency, and a third for representing NIPSS positively in an external engagement”.
Shuaib also said that on April 28, he received another query—less than two months after the first, adding that this time, the NIPSS cited a restricted internal PRNigeria editorial email dated April 25, 2025, titled “Understanding the ‘Blue’ in the Blue Economy: A PR Perspective.”
Shuaib insisted that the unauthorised interception of this internal correspondence constituted a serious breach of digital privacy and can rightly be described as cyberbullying and cybercrime.
In the words of Shuaib; “The article, which I authored and later published in the media, provided insights into the government’s Marine and Blue Economy agenda from a Public Relations standpoint and did not refer to NIPSS whatsoever.
“Shockingly, the institute had accessed the email before it reached its intended editorial recipient—a clear act of unwarranted surveillance and professional misconduct. This act was not just a violation of privacy—it amounted to cyberbullying and professional misconduct,” he stressed.
Shuaib said that the mental strain from the ordeal reportedly led to a hypertension diagnosis at the NIPSS clinic, emphasising that an official directive later barred other participants from interacting with him, leaving him completely isolated.
He explained that in addition to his suspension and exclusion from all official communication platforms, he was denied participation in the SEC 47 international study tours, despite having paid the full ₦18.2 million fee. All other participants were granted travel privileges and Estacodes for official tours across Africa and other continents.
Shuaib said that he told an internal investigative committee—convened after his suspension—that while NIPSS’s Terms of Undertaking emphasise confidentiality, they do not define what qualifies as public, restricted, or classified information, as the institute does not have a communication policy to guide social or media engagement of the participants.
According to him; “All my articles were based on publicly available national discourse and never revealed internal NIPSS content. Following two appearances before the committee, I did not receive no further communication”.
In his appeal to President Tinubu, Shuaib demanded for an independent investigation into the disciplinary process and cyber-privacy violations and a review of his suspension and exclusion.
He also urged the establishment of a clear communication policy for participants at NIPSS, just as he criticised what he described as the “excessive militarisation of the academic environment at NIPSS”, an approach he noted deviated from global best practices at institutions like Brookings (USA), Chatham House (UK), SWP (Germany), and RSIS (Singapore), where constructive dissent and academic freedom are valued.
“All I seek is the opportunity to complete the course, reclaim my dignity, and continue contributing meaningfully to the development of our great nation,” he appealed.
