Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, has responded to media reports claiming that he has contracted the COVID-19 virus and is now in isolation receiving treatment.
According to previous reports, Mr. Mohammed may have contracted the virus after Garba Shehu confirmed he tested positive for it.
However, in a statement issued by his Special Assistant to the President (Media) Office of the Minister of Information and Culture, Segun Adeyemi, the minister stated that he does not have COVID-19 and is not being isolated or treated anywhere.
“The attention of Information and Culture Minister, Alhaji Mohammed, has been drawn to a report making the rounds that he has contracted the COVID-19 virus and that he is now in isolation, where he is receiving treatment.
“For the record, the Minister does not have COVID-19, hence he is neither in isolation nor receiving treatment anywhere.
“That report, which was first published by an online newspaper and then latched on to by some mainstream lapdog media, once again highlights the uphill task we face in our campaign to stamp out fake news and misinformation.
The Minister attended the Federal Executive Council meeting on Wednesday, an extraordinary FEC meeting on Thursday, and the swearing-in ceremony for the Minister of State for Works and Housing on Friday. All of these events took place at the Villa, where many media organizations’ correspondents are stationed. In fact, on Wednesday and Thursday, the Minister coordinated the post-FEC press briefing. Could he have done this from the fictitious isolation facility to which he was sentenced by a nefarious reporter?
