Mothers of Chibok is historic because it reframes the narrative. It does not sensationalize pain. It dignifies it. It does not exploit trauma. It honours it. And in doing so, it reclaims agency for those who have too often been spoken about, but not listened to
IT is both an honour and a solemn privilege to give opening remarks here tonight at the premiere of Mothers of Chibok, a film by the remarkable Emmy award winning storyteller, Kachi Benson.
This is not just a film premiere. It is a historic moment.
For more than a decade, the name Chibok has echoed across the world as a headline, a hashtag, a symbol. But what Kachi has done with this film is something far more powerful — he has restored humanity where the world once saw only statistics. He has turned a global news event back into what it has always been: a story of mothers, of families, of faith, of unbreakable endurance.
When I first encountered this film, I wrote that it is not simply about tragedy — it is about memory, resistance, and love. It is about women who refused to disappear into silence. Women who insisted that the world must not move on. Women whose grief became a form of protest, and whose hope became an act of defiance.
Mothers of Chibok is historic because it reframes the narrative. It does not sensationalize pain. It dignifies it. It does not exploit trauma. It honours it. And in doing so, it reclaims agency for those who have too often been spoken about, but not listened to.
There is enormous power in this film.
The power of proximity — because we sit with these women.
The power of testimony — because they speak for themselves.
And the power of cinema — because film can hold complexity in a way headlines never could.
This work reminds us that documentary storytelling, at its best, is not just about recording reality. It is about shaping collective memory. It is about insisting that injustice is neither normal nor forgettable.
Tonight, as we watch, we are not just audiences. We are witnesses.
And to witness is to accept responsibility — to carry these stories forward, to refuse indifference, and to honour the courage of the mothers whose strength anchors this film.
Kachi Benson has given us a work of art. But more than that, he has given us a mirror into ourselves as a nation.
May we have the courage to look into it.
Finally Thank you —
To everyone who made today happen
To Ajoke Silva Yinka Oduniyi and our Emmy award winning Filmmaker Kachi Benaon for making such a beautiful film .
Finally thank you to the mothers of CHIBOK for showing us what courage truly means.
Welcome to this historic premiere.
