Former Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has recounted the critical role he played in reshaping public perception about the fight against Boko Haram during President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
While addressing participants at the Spokespersons Summit in Abuja on Tuesday, themed “Upholding Integrity in Leadership Communication and National Development”, Mohammed described how changing the narrative about insurgents’ hold on Borno State was one of the biggest communication challenges he faced.
“When I assumed office in 2015, the general belief was that Boko Haram was still in control of major towns in the North-East,” he said.
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“We couldn’t afford to let fear overshadow the gains our military had made.”
To tackle this, he organized a covert media tour with over 40 journalists to towns like Bama and Konduga that had been recaptured from insurgents. He recalled the tension:
“Most of the reporters didn’t even know where we were going until we boarded the military aircraft. Some wanted to back out but there was no turning back.”
During the trip, journalists witnessed firsthand the devastation and the recovery efforts. “You could feel the weight of what had happened abandoned homes, bullet-riddled walls, inscriptions in Arabic. But you could also see the signs of hope,” he noted.
After the tour, his team launched a robust media offensive. “We flooded every channel with real stories testimonies of survivors, images of rebuilt communities, and the courage of our troops,” he said.
“We held press briefings, appeared on national TV, and distributed documentary footage that captured the transformation. It wasn’t just about optics; it was about changing the mindset.”
Mohammed said the campaign wasn’t just about projecting success but rebuilding trust. “We wanted to let Nigerians know that the war was being won and that the people of the North-East were not abandoned.”
