Zahra Buhari’s social media fame declines -By Geoff Iyatse

The social media fame of Miss Zahra Buhari, President Muhammadu Buhari’s daughter, may have been declining since the inauguration of the Buhari administration.

Unlike the pre-election popularity she enjoyed, her tweets now record fewer comments, favourites and retweets. While the volume of tweets that used to hit her page has nosedived, the few responses that follow her posts nowadays are no longer sympathetic.

Her post on the controversy that followed the recent political appointments, for instance, was described by some Internet users as arrogant and insensitive.

Amid the outrage over the appointments that many people described as unfair, Zahra took to Twitter to re-echo the views of the President’s loyalists. She said many Nigerians were not ready for change.

“Many Nigerians thought they were ready for change, only a few registered it in their minds. I pray for us all to mean this word – change.

“It is high time Nigeria stopped giving too many chances. You could probably be replaced with immediate effect if you are not competent enough for the job.

“Everyone has an opinion; I agree with that. But people need to look beyond regions. All we need are committed individuals to get the job done,” she tweeted.

Unlike before, the tweets recorded a few interactions. But, beyond the poor engagement generated, those who commented on them described the views as insensitive.

Responding through @saintabadini, Abe said Zahra could do without the remarks. He said Nigerians only wanted Buhari to be mindful of the implication of marginalising a section of the country.

“All we ask from the President is to be cautious. He should show sensitivity towards those who elected him and the way they perceive the appointments,” he tweeted.

Tweeting as @Simeonii_1, another user said it was unfortunate that Zahra could not feel the pains of other Nigerians.

Zahra’s sensational social media unveiling during her father’s presidential campaign earned her thousands of Twitter followers. Soon after the page was unveiled, it became a popular brand on the site with hundreds of followers pouring in on an hourly basis

In a matter of weeks, thousands hooked up with her on her famous page. Her name and photographs became regular sights on different social media platforms where she was widely celebrated.

After a series of controversies, she signed off the popular account and took to another handle to blast the Peoples Democratic Party. She alleged that the PDP hacked her account to post an embarrassing error.

She said, “The PDP had someone hack into my Twitter account to post a grammatical blunder. This is so uncalled for.”

The subsequent account – @Zahra_Buhari – was also marred by another round of controversies when it was used to insult a president of an African country. The Presidency issued a statement, claiming that Zahra had nothing to do with the account.

The statement signed by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, gave the authentic page of the President’s daughter as @Zahra_Buhari was fake.

“Zahra’s authentic handle is @ZmBuhari and any handle other than this on Twitter should be considered as fake and therefore fraudulent,” Shehu said.

The press statement itself generated a heated debate. Many people wondered why a presidential instrument should be used to ‘advertise’ a social media page of the President’s relative.

Notwithstanding the attention the statement drew to the handle, it has failed to replicate the success Zahra’s pre-election handle enjoyed.

On the new account, she is followed by 8,460 tweeters, a dismal profile when compared with the one that was taken down on the account of hacking.

Meanwhile, Marilyn Ogar, the former spokesperson of the Department of State Service, was on top of Nigerians social media trending topic on Thursday. This followed her dismissal from the service.