Human Rights Group condemn Lai Mohammed for threatening to sanction CNN

A human rights group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, HURIWA, has slammed Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed for threatening to sanction international media outlet, CNN, following its publication of a comprehensive investigative report on the shooting at Lekki toll gate on 20th of October 2020, during the heat of the EndSARS protest in Nigeria.

HURIWA described Mohammed’s comments as unbridled, irrational, irresponsible, emotional, and totally provocative.

In a statement by its National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, HURIWA said that the minister was deliberately looking to discredit the impartial findings of the international news organization.

The statement reads in part: “It is shameful that rather than applaud and commend the CNN for it’s deployment of the highest quality of technology to ascertain what exactly took place on October 20th at Lekki tollgate Lagos state, a cabinet level minister in Nigeria paid by the public is rather engaging in warfare against the public.

“What took place today as press conference by the minister has nothing informative and cultural about it, but rather we will look at it from the dimension of cultural tyranny that was displayed by this person who parades himself as the minister of information. He should cover himself in shame.

“The reason for saying this is that the minister is promoting misinformation by fighting qualitaive dissemination of information as was done by the cable news network CNN.

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“One would have expected that a government that is working to promote the welfare of the Nigerian people should be exceedingly happy that the CNN has helped us to expose the hidden information by the characters that unleashed violence on the people at the Lekki Toll Gates Lagos on October 20th 2020.”

Recall that CNN had recently published an investigative report which contradicts claims by Lagos state government and the Nigerian army as to what really transpired at the toll booth on October 20th which led to the deaths of a number of peaceful protesters.

Nigerians have also consequently hailed CNN for surgically probing the sad incident and effectively quashing the conflicting claims peddled by the Nigerian army and the government over the truth of what went down as a black Tuesday for Nigerians who had gone out to demand good governance from their leaders.