Dino Melaye mocks Tinubu: 'Bola pass Ebola' as Nigerians ignore outbreak alert
Former senator Dino Melaye took to X on Sunday to mock Nigeria's economic hardship under President Bola Tinubu, declaring "Bola pass Ebola" in response to last week's Ebola outbreak announcement. Melaye, who represented Kogi West, argued Nigerians have become desensitized to bad news after "living with Ebola's senior brother for more than 3 years now."
According to Daily Post, Melaye's post reflects a broader sentiment: the Ebola alert barely registered because citizens are preoccupied with survival amid inflation, fuel costs, and naira depreciation. "Everybody no send," he wrote—pidgin for "nobody cares." Nigeria confirmed the Ebola outbreak last week, 12 years after the 2014 index case.
The comparison is blunt political satire, but it underscores a real intelligence signal: when daily hardship feels existential, public health warnings struggle to cut through. Health authorities now face a communication challenge—getting attention for a genuine viral threat when the population equates governance itself with a deadlier virus.
Melaye's phrasing—"Bola pass Ebola"—has already circulated widely. Whether it's gallows humor or genuine despair, it frames the Tinubu administration's third year as a crisis of credibility. The next Ebola update from NCDC will test if any official message can penetrate the noise.
What does it say about a country when a former lawmaker's joke about the president being worse than a hemorrhagic fever feels like the most honest public health commentary of the week?