In a statement on Tuesday, the governor’s spokesman, Bologi Ibrahim, said the governor was quoted out of context and did not capture his statement in its original context.

Mohammed Umaru Bago

Niger State Governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago has denied reports of him giving dress code to civil servants in the state.

Recall that Governor Bago, in a viral video where he spoke in Hausa, purportedly asked civil servants not to be wearing “Baba Riga and Kaftan” and that they should brace up and start going to farm.

However, in a statement on Tuesday, the governor’s spokesman, Bologi Ibrahim, said the governor was quoted out of context and did not capture his statement in its original context.

He said the governor did not announce or mandate any dress code for the civil servants, rather he meant every professional should be dressed based on the demands of his or her job.

Ibrahim claimed that the viral video was curiously and mischievously edited to malign the governor, stressing that the general public must disregard the clip because the full video clearly defines what he meant.

He, therefore, advised social media influencers to be mindful and sure of the contents and context of the information they circulate on social media to avoid misrepresentations of facts.

He said: “Mr Governor believes that, as a state, we have no reason to be poor because of the enormous agricultural potentials of the state and that his government was already investing heavily in the agricultural revolution, hence the need for all to collectively embrace farming including the civil servants.

“The governor was only encouraging civil servants to be farmers and to be good farmers. The governor merely encouraged the public workers to always dress smartly to the farm which did not in any way imply that civil servants now have a dress code to the office from Monday to Thursday as erroneously captured in the video making the rounds.”