Once again, Nigeria’s former Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has made headlines by dismissing the Lekki Tollgate massacre claims as “fake news.” In a dramatic interview on ARISE TV, Mohammed,never one to back down from controversy,firmly rejected the narrative that a massacre occurred during the #EndSARS protests, brushing aside the global outrage and persistent questions.
Sticking to his familiar script, Mohammed declared that the massacre story is nothing but a fabrication, and went on a tirade against international media, singling out CNN for what he described as using “secondhand and third-hand information.” He boldly claimed, “Nobody ever said nobody died during #EndSARS. People died in Abuja, they died in Lagos, they died in Kano. But what we said was that CNN was not at the toll gate.” Mohammed’s criticism of CNN and other foreign outlets has become a regular feature every time the Lekki issue resurfaces.
In a move many will see as dismissive, Mohammed doubled down on his skepticism by declaring that no families have ever come forward to officially claim loss of a loved one from the alleged massacre. “If a man has a goat and it doesn’t come home, he looks for it. Five years on, nobody has come to say, ‘My son went to the toll gate and didn’t return,’” he argued. His analogy, comparing missing persons to lost livestock, is already stirring reactions on social media.
Though he conceded that the #EndSARS protests were “unfortunate and tragic,” Mohammed insisted that the events at Lekki have been blown out of proportion for political and sensationalist purposes. “Massacre is fake news,” he asserted, instead choosing to highlight the deaths of security personnel. “Thirty-seven policemen were killed, six soldiers were killed. This is what I kept saying.”
Not stopping there, Mohammed revisited his infamous role in the nation’s Twitter shutdown. He insisted that the move was not a petty reaction to President Buhari’s deleted tweet, but a much bigger issue. According to him, “Twitter had become the platform of choice for those who were destabilising the country.” He claimed the government acted to protect national security, despite massive backlash and accusations of stifling free speech from across the world.
The Lekki Tollgate saga remains one of Nigeria’s hottest talking points, sparking endless debates and global attention. While human rights groups and international organizations repeatedly call for accountability, Lai Mohammed and the government continue to slam the “massacre” story as a media invention.
As the controversy drags on, Mohammed’s relentless “fake news” claims are sure to keep the conspiracy mill going, deepening the divide between official versions and public sentiment. Whether this latest interview clarifies anything or simply adds fuel to the fire, one thing is certain: the battle over Nigeria’s #EndSARS legacy rages on,with the media firmly in the crosshairs.
