Lagos State Police Command on Thursday, has warned purveyors of fake news to desist from spreading misinformation capable of inciting violence in the state ahead of the forthcoming general elections as anyone found wanting will be held accountable.
Commissioner of Police, CP Abiodun Alabi gave the warning at a-day symposium organized for broadcast, print and online journalists by the State Police Command with the theme: fake news and its implication on security, especially in view of the forthcoming elections.
The Program which held at the Police Officers’ Mess, Ikeja, Lagos was designed to sensitize journalists and media executives on consequences of misinformation and disinformation.
Declaring the Symposium open, CP Alabi noted that one fake news could lead to the breakdown of law and order during the general elections even beyond the shores of the news purveyor while urged the media executives to always fact-check information before sharing.
Also speaking at the symposium, the President of Eagle Crime Awareness and Prevention Initiative (ECAPI), Amb. Samuel Eniola said fake news is nothing but the evil of creating unnecessary tension in the society with the sole aim of changing people’s beliefs and orientations towards a particular situation.
According to him, “At the moment, nothing seems to threaten the peace and tranquility of the Nigeria like the menace of fake news because it has emerged as the propeller to the forces that engender insecurity.
“However, Nigerian Politicians are the most desperate anywhere in the whole world that will stop at nothing to achieve their selfish aims. As we journey towards 2023 election come February, the political atmosphere is already getting charged and the polity being heated up by their activities and engagements.
“They are in a race to outsmart one another with every means humanly possible with the social media being the most instrument at hand to fight dirty.The use of propaganda as a weapon of political destruction and character assassination with so much misinformation.
“And fake news against one another which are being maliciously spread if not check will cause tension and can lead to violence and break down of law and order. Fake news before, during and after elections as it were has been a major challenge or threat to the security of our Nation with confidence reduction in the mindset of the innocent citizens”, he said.
ECAPI President urged Journalists to work in synergy with Police, other security operatives towards ensuring news published should be in its right perspective in order not to jeopardize the peace and electoral process of the general elections which he said is not negotiable, adding that with a symposium like this is obviously a way forward.
Also lending their voices to the condemnation of fake news at the symposium were the Resident Electoral Commissioner of INEC, Lagos, Mr Olusegun Agbaje, MFR, mni and representatives from the Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).
Other are, Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Inter-Party Advisory Council Nigeria (IPAC), Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Center for Democracy and Development (CDD), Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC) and the Police Eminent Persons Forum (PEPF).
