President Muhammadu Buhari and the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) have decried the role of fake news and misinformation, saying they have been used to aggravate conflicts and crises, exacerbate insecurity, distort government efforts, fuel apprehension among the citizens and create distrust between the governments and their people.
Buhari said it was evident in Nigerian societies that getting reliable information is a constant battle, adding that media practitioners and stakeholders within the sector face the clear and present danger of misinformation.
He stated this at the high-level opening session of the Global Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Week 2022 with the theme: “Nurturing Trust, a Media and Information Literacy Imperative”.
The president, however, stressed the need to confront the challenges of rising misinformation and hate speech. He said Nigerians must come together to defend freedom of speech while upholding other values that the nation cherishes.
Buhari said his administration will continue to work for a common standard that balances rights with responsibilities to keep the most vulnerable from harm and help strengthen and enrich our communities and most importantly strengthen trust and social cohesion by improving critical thinking competencies to adequately assess the quality of information received and shared which I believe is a key component of the MIL programme this week.
He said MIL has over the years proven to be a veritable tool in building the capacities of individuals and communities to learn, decipher, educate and effectively use data and information for the common good.