"I was reappointed because Buhari trusts me" —Lai Mohammed

Mohammed said his reappointment “is a measure of the confidence he (the President) has and posting me back in this Ministry is also a measure of that confidence.”

The newly sworn-in Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, on Wednesday, charged Directors in the ministry to redouble their efforts and justify the confidence reposed in them by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Minister who stated these while addressing Directors and senior management staff told them to work hard to achieve the goal of leaving a lasting legacy for the Buhari’s administration.

He also thanked the media team that have been working with him in the last four years, saying “they helped us and gave us the kind of reputation we enjoy today.”

The Minister said, “We give thanks to Almighty Allah who made it possible for me to be reappointed and also to be posted back to this Ministry. I also thank Almighty Allah that has spared all our lives to be here again. The same time, I want to welcome the new Directors who I have not worked with before and also express my joy with the Directors that I worked with.

“Whatever success that we have achieved was because of the cooperation we got from the Directors who worked with us. I know that I did drive people very hard, but at the end of the day, the result is clear. The evidence that I drove people very hard is clear. Less than three months, I can see that the Directors are now fatter than when I left them.

“My charge to all of us is to please redouble our efforts so that we can justify the confidence Mr. President has reposed in us. That Mr. President has reappointed me is a measure of the confidence he has and posting me back in this Ministry is also a measure of that confidence.

“We all need to work hard. I remember that in 2015 when I came in, my charge to all my Directors and Permanent Secretary was that we should not be despondent and say that this is a Grade A, B or C Ministry. But we can all work hard to bring our Ministry to be the Number one Ministry in the nation and I think this should be our goal: to leave a lasting legacy for the administration.”

Earlier, the Permanent Secretary, Grace Isu Gekpe, expressed gladness that Lai Mohammed was back.