They are questions about the price of food, about security in our communities, and about the direction in which our country is headed.

It is the duty of this office, the Ministry of Information and National Orientation, to speak to these questions directly, clearly, and with respect for every Nigerian bearing the weight of this moment.

The last thirty-one months have been a period of foundational, often difficult, transformation. Our bold reforms, beginning with the necessary but painful decisions on subsidies and exchange rates, were engineered to break a cycle of economic stagnation and secure a future of sustainable prosperity. This path was never promised to be easy, but it was promised to be honest and purposeful.

Today, the first green shoots of that promised stability are visible. December 2025 marked the thirteenth consecutive month of expansion in business activity. Multinational firms are re-evaluating Nigeria with serious intent.

Our GDP is growing, inflation is declining, and our external reserves are strengthening. These are not mere statistics for reports; they are the essential groundwork upon which lasting improvement in everyday life is built.

However, a nation is not governed by indices alone. A nation is governed through trust, forged in the clear communication of both struggle and progress. My role is to be a steady voice for this administration, to explain our ambitions and our actions.

Upon this emerging macroeconomic stability, we have prioritised layering direct interventions that touch lives. The student loan programme (NELFUND) is opening doors.

The Presidential CNG initiative is aimed at reducing transport costs. Programmes like LEEP, the Jubilee Fellows, and the 3MTT are designed to put skills and opportunity directly into the hands of our youth.

In agriculture, a historic recapitalisation of the Bank of Agriculture and new mechanisation programs are deployed to combat food insecurity at its root.

We are also pushing ambitious infrastructure. The Coastal Highway, the Sokoto-Badagry Expressway, the AKK Gas Pipeline, and new rail lines, to unite our economy and reduce the costs embedded in our geography.

In security, a new architecture is being rolled out. We are investing heavily in recruitment, equipment, and international cooperation to finally turn the tide against terrorism and banditry. The recent rescue of our abducted students in Kebbi and Niger states, respectively, is a testament to this relentless focus, and we remain steadfast until every Nigerian feels safe.

I acknowledge the fatigue that comes with endurance. The anxiety over prices, the worry for loved ones, and the desire for quicker results are all valid feelings; they are the human context of governance. This administration hears you.

Our resolve is to accelerate the pace at which these reforms translate into tangible, widespread relief.

This is why in 2026, our “Budget of Consolidation, Renewed Resilience and Shared Prosperity” is critical. It is a commitment to double down on what is working, to solidify gains, and to ensure that the shared prosperity we speak of becomes a lived reality for more Nigerians, faster.

But nation-building is a covenant. We, in government, commit to lead with clarity, to deploy resources with integrity, and to communicate with constancy.

We commit to face the people, to account for our stewardship, and to explain our path. In return, the civic strength of our nation, our collective will to pay taxes, to protect public goods, to engage constructively, and to reject the divisive pull of mischaracterisation and disinformation is what will ultimately secure our shared future.

This office, under my watch, shall be accountable and purposeful. It will remain a responsible, accessible, and truthful channel between the government and you, the people. We will explain, we will defend, we will listen, and we will report. You will continually and sustainably see and hear from this ministry, a clear voice of accountability for the government’s whole agenda.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, has never been one to be fazed by problems or challenges. His approach has consistently been calm and decisive, turning difficulties into opportunities to do things better and more efficiently.

Our recent engagements as a government with the United States bear witness to this approach. Under the President’s leadership, we turned a tense period into an opportunity to deepen bilateral relations with the US and to ramp up our anti-insurgency efforts.

But even as we acknowledge the gains we have made, we do not seek to live in the past. Our eyes are firmly focused on what lies ahead and on how tomorrow must improve on today.

For us, every moment in the present is an opportunity to double down on what is working, so that we can reap the full benefits of reform.

The journey ahead demands our collective patience and our shared resolve. The easy politics of division and noise will persist, but the hard work of building a Nigeria that works for all must prevail. We have laid a new foundation. Now, we must build the house together.

I wish every Nigerian a peaceful and productive year ahead.

*Mohammed Idris is the minister of Information and National Orientation

Recall that the Binance executive named three Nigerian lawmakers who allegedly demanded a $150 million bribe from him.

The head of financial crime of crypto firm Binance, who was detained in Nigeria for several months and was discharged by a Federal High Court in October 2024.

But, Mohammed Idris, the minister of Information and National Orientation, said the government has “noted with concern the outrageous allegations, misinformation, and defamatory statements being disseminated by Tigran Gambaryan, an American personnel of Binance who was recently tried in Nigeria for financial crimes”.

“While the Federal Government of Nigeria is reluctant to engage Mr. Gambaryan, due to the high-level diplomatic intervention that resolved his case, we are compelled to set the record straight to prevent his falsehoods from gaining traction”.

The Minister said that the first visit of Tigran Gambaryan and his colleagues to Nigeria was at their own discretion, and the Government was not officially involved.

“However, when the Government’s attention was drawn to an alleged bribery demand during that trip, an investigation was immediately launched, despite there being no formal complaint from anyone.

Mr. Gambaryan’s second visit to Nigeria was part of a wider probe into the criminal manipulation of the Nigerian currency through peer-to-peer platforms like Binance, but investigators were frustrated by the tactics deployed by Gambaryan and his team.

Mr. Gambaryan was released by the Nigerian government in October 2024 on humanitarian grounds and following a high-level diplomatic intervention that ended with tangible benefits for Nigeria.

The government rejected Binance’s offer of a $5 million down payment in exchange for Mr. Gambaryan’s freedom, in favour of a more beneficial settlement with the American government.

“We categorically deny the retaliatory claims made by Mr. Gambaryan against Nigerian officials involved in his case, and we urge the public to disregard these false accusations in their entirety.

“It is essential to note that Mr. Gambaryan’s allegations are not only unsubstantiated but also lack credibility, given his apparent motive to discredit and intimidate those who ensured he faced justice.

“However, we are confident that both the Nigerian and American judicial systems will provide Mr. Gambaryan with a fair opportunity to substantiate his claims in court. Until then, we advise the public to exercise caution and not be swayed by Mr. Gambaryan’s unfounded and malicious claims”.

The Minister, in a statement over the weekend, said that establishing a degree-awarding academy for public relations practice in Nigeria, is a welcome development.

Similarly, Minister Idris has congratulated a Nigerian, Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan, as the newly elected secretary-general of the African Public Relations Association (APRA).

The new APRA Executive Council comprises Arik Karani from Kenya as President, Dr. Michele Mekeme from Cameroon as Vice President, and Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan from Nigeria as Secretary-General.

The Minister words:

“I welcome the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed between the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations and the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management, to establish a degree-awarding academy for public relations practice in Nigeria.

“I equally welcome the recent election of a Nigerian, Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan, as the Secretary-General of the African Public Relations Association (APRA).

“Also worthy of note is the fact that Public Relations (PR) has now been designated as a cadre in the Federal Civil Service, with effect from December 2023.

“The Information Officer Cadre has been re-designated to ‘Information and Public Relations Officer Cadre’, and the Executive Cadre to ‘Executive Officer (Information and Public Relations)’. The NIPR played a critical role in championing this, and deserve commendation.

“Nigeria will continue to play a leading role in strengthening and elevating public relations practice at home and across Africa. Recently, when I received the President of the African Public Relations Association, Mr. Arik Karani, he commended Nigeria in this regard”, Idris said.

He added, “[Nigeria] was, for the longest time, the only country in Africa that had a law that professionalized public relations. It was Nigeria that started it on the continent, and only last year did Zambia come out with its own law. So now we have two countries on the continent, and only now in Kenya, the bill for professionalizing public relations is at the second reading in Parliament.”

“Rest assured that the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will continue to provide the enabling environment for everybody within Nigeria’s communications industry to thrive”, he said.

The Minister, also a Fellow of APRA, in a statement by Rabiu Ibrahim, his special assistant (Media), acknowledged the significance of the election for the advancement of public relations across Africa, adding that while it is a pivotal moment for APRA, the collective expertise, and leadership of the newly-elected Executive Council would be instrumental in attaining the long-term vision of the association.

The new APRA Executive Council comprises Arik Karani from Kenya as President, Dr. Michele Mekeme from Cameroon as Vice President, and Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan from Nigeria as Secretary-General.

Idris urged the new Executive Council to “continue the trajectory of reforms in APRA,” stressing the importance of expanding the democratic space by encouraging greater participation of national public relations institutions across the continent.

He highlighted the need for inclusivity and collaboration to strengthen the public relations profession in Africa.

The Minister also called on the Executive Council to work closely with the African Union Commission and the Council of Ministers to ensure that public relations remains central to policy formulation, programme execution, and project implementation.

“Public relations should be at the heart of policy, programs, and project implementation,” he stated.

He also extended his salutations to Dr. Omoniyi Ibietan, the head of Media Relations at the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), on his emergence as the Secretary-General of APRA.

“Dr. Ibietan is a thoroughbred journalist, public relations expert, and author, who is expected to bring his enormous wealth of experience to bear on APRA positively,” Idris said.

The minister stated this while addressing members of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) during its 7th Annual Conference in Abuja on Thursday, October 5, 2023, with the theme: Roadmap for socio-economic recovery and sustainability.

Idris explained that one strategic component of the roadmap for socio-economic recovery and sustainability should be the projection of the country in a good light, adding that by so doing, foreign direct investment and other developmental plans of the country would be achieved.

He said:

“If you say you want foreign direct investment, you want Nigeria to grow, and you want every good thing that happens to all great countries in the world to happen in this country, you must be prepared to project your own country; nobody else will do it for us”.

The minister therefore urged GOCOP to carry out its responsibility with patriotism and professionalism, noting that the good things happening in the country far outweigh the bad things, and they should be projected.

“As Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, you have this great responsibility to ensure that you report only the truth and to help government officials to also tell the truth; it is your responsibility and you have to uphold it.”

The minister urged the Guild not to relent in its quest to sanitize and get rid of fake news carried by online media but to continue to sustain its peer review system and disciplinary measures against erring members.

Idris reiterated the government’s commitment to return credibility to the business of government in the country while urging Nigerians to be optimistic with the present administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who is working assiduously to chart a roadmap for the socio-economic recovery and sustainability of the country.

“You have to trust the person you have elected, and that’s the only way you can hold him accountable when he goes overboard,” he said.

He promised to tell Nigerians as it is at all times, saying such would build credibility and trust in government.

On her part, the president of the guild, Maureen Chigbo, said the Guild would continue to ensure that it upholds professionalism which its members are known for, adding that not all online publishers are members of the guild due to its insistence on a mechanism to check and sanction erring members who do not play by the rules.

“We will continue to work towards making sure that our members are professionals because professionalism is our watchword.”

The event had in attendance Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, Hadiza Bala Usman; Registrar JAMB, and many others.