By Joseph Erunke
Abuja -Former Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has detailed how the Federal Government sought to counter misinformation about the Boko Haram insurgency through a first-hand media tour of liberated territories in the North-East, as captured in Chapter Two of his book, Headlines and Soundbites: Media Moments that Defined an Administration.
In the chapter, entitled “Changing the Narrative: A Journey into Boko Haram’s Former Strongholds,” Mohammed situates the visit against the backdrop of widespread insecurity that dominated national discourse ahead of the 2015 general elections.
Boko Haram’s violent campaign, which began in 2009, resulted in thousands of deaths and culminated in the seizure of large parts of Borno State by 2014 and early 2015.
According to the book, Boko Haram carried out several high-profile attacks, including the 2011 bombings of the police headquarters and the United Nations building in Abuja, as well as mass killings in Kano, Baga, Jos, Gamboru-Ngala and other locations.
The abduction of 276 schoolgirls from Chibok, Borno State, in April 2014, intensified global attention on Nigeria’s security challenges.
Mohammed noted that by the time President Muhammadu Buhari assumed office on May 29, 2015, the insurgents controlled up to 20 of Borno State’s 27 local government areas.
He said the president’s early foreign engagements focused on building regional and international coalitions to combat Boko Haram.
Despite military advances, the former minister said there was persistent local and international skepticism about government claims that the terrorists had been dislodged from captured territories.
To address this, he led a top-secret trip on December 5, 2015, with about 40 local and international journalists to Maiduguri and other previously occupied towns.
“Despite the progress made by our troops, there was widespread disbelief at home and abroad that Boko Haram had truly been pushed out of the territories it once controlled.
“We realised that no amount of official statements could counter the doubts and misinformation unless journalists saw the situation for themselves,” he explained in the book.
“For security reasons, the journalists only knew they were travelling on a Nigerian Air Force aircraft; the destination was revealed only at the point of boarding,” he said.
Mohammed described Bama as completely devastated, with thousands of buildings destroyed and visible signs of the insurgents’ occupation.
He said: “Bama was a picture of total devastation. Thousands of houses lay in ruins, and the scale of destruction spoke louder than any government briefing.”
He also recounted visits to internally displaced persons in Kaure, where residents shared accounts of displacement and loss.
Mohammed said the experience highlighted the humanitarian impact of the insurgency and the conditions faced by civilians.
“The visit brought home, in the most painful way, the human cost of the insurgency, families uprooted, livelihoods destroyed, and communities traumatised,” he added.
The book states that the visit was the first time a Minister of Information had entered Boko Haram’s former strongholds since the insurgency began in 2009.
Then Borno State governor, Kashim Shettima, was said to have been emotional while receiving the delegation after the tour.
Mohammed said the media reports that followed the visit helped validate military claims of success, challenged misinformation and improved public confidence in the counter-insurgency campaign.
He added that the trip also strengthened the morale of the armed forces and Nigeria’s international standing.
The former minister disclosed that the trip nearly did not take place due to last-minute security clearance issues, but received presidential approval while President Buhari was attending an international summit in South Africa.
The journey, he explained, was a significant moment in the administration’s strategic communication efforts and a defining experience of his tenure as Minister of Information and Culture.
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