The spokesperson for the All Progressives Congress, APC, Presidential Campaign Council, Alwan Hassan, has come under scrutiny after his attempt to demonstrate the functionality of Nigeria’s 112 emergency number failed during a live television interview.
The incident occurred on Tuesday while Hassan appeared on Channels Television’s programme, where he was interviewed by journalist Seun Okinbaloye.
During the discussion, Hassan challenged Okinbaloye to dial 112, Nigeria’s emergency telephone number, to demonstrate that the service was operational.
He argued that many Nigerians were unaware of the emergency service, which he likened to similar systems used in countries such as the United States.
“Take your phone and call 112. Nobody knows about this. We used to hear about it in America. Put it on speaker, Seun. Welcome to Nigeria,” Hassan said.
However, the demonstration did not go as expected, as the call failed to connect.
Reacting to the unsuccessful attempt, Okinbaloye questioned the functionality of the emergency service and linked the development to what he described as the administration’s unfulfilled promises.
“It’s not working. Maybe this is one of you people’s promises that is not fully functional. You have a long list of non-functional promises,” the interviewer said.
In response, Hassan appeared to acknowledge the setback but maintained that the government needed additional time to fulfil its promises.
“This is why we are asking for more time,” he said.
However, a subsequent attempt by NEWSUNPLUG to reach the emergency number also proved unsuccessful, as the call failed to connect.