Former Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has confessed that he considered throwing in the towel during the #EndSARS protests which rocked the nation in 2020.
Mohammed who made the confession in his recently released book, ‘Headlines and Sound Bites: Media Moments That Defined an Administration,’ said the protests remained the most challenging moment of his time in public office.
The former minister who described the events surrounding the protests as a period marked by fake news and disinformation, admitted that the situation posed a “clear and present danger to Nigeria” as a country.
He also mentioned that the suspension of Twitter by the federal government was one of the toughest decisions he had to make as a result of the fake news that were being pushed out.
“While the suspension of Twitter was one of the toughest decisions I took while in office, the #EndSARS saga was undoubtedly the most difficult moment of my tenure as minister,” he stated in the memoirs.
“It confirmed my worst fears about fake news and disinformation as a clear and present danger to our country. It posed a direct threat to the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari and, sadly, it dragged my family into an unwarranted crisis for no fault of theirs,” he said.
Mohammed also recalled the outbreak of nationwide protests following a viral video of alleged police brutality in Delta State, which he said set the tone for the nationwide protests and the attendant deaths and destruction of property that followed.
“The way the #EndSARS protest unfolded highlighted the grave dangers of fake news, hate speech and disinformation, and how these vices, when amplified, can imperil democracy itself.
“The security agencies were specifically targeted. Police personnel were hacked down in the most gruesome manner that called into question the sanity of their killers. The toll was devastating: six soldiers and 37 policemen were killed all over the country during the crisis.
“Also, 196 policemen were injured; 164 police vehicles were destroyed, and 134 police stations were burnt down. In addition, the violence left 57 civilians dead across the country, 269 private and corporate facilities burnt, looted or vandalised, 243 government facilities burnt or vandalised, and 81 government warehouses looted,” he wrote, noting that the following day, media reports began to spread claims that a massacre had occurred.
“The Federal Government almost fell for the disinformation. I had gone to see the Chief of Staff on the need for Council to observe a minute’s silence for those who were reportedly killed at the Lekki Toll Gate.
“It was when Mr President called the Governor of Lagos to commiserate with him that he learnt from the governor that no such massacre had taken place.
“Undoubtedly, the most disgraceful and irresponsible reporting of the events of October 20, 2020, was carried out by CNN.
“Its one-sided reporting breached the most basic principles of journalism — balance and fairness. How could CNN claim to do an ‘investigative report’ without speaking to any Nigerian government official?
“My family came under fire, almost literally. They bore the brunt. They were vilified online, their businesses boycotted and my son labelled ‘the child of a murderer.”
