Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, has said that fake news and misinformation are on the rise, particularly on social media.
Mohammed, who announced this on Tuesday, claimed that the opposition is undermining the elections by spreading false information.
According to him, fake news and misinformation pose a serious threat to the elections because they have the power to thwart their success.
”I can say, unequivocally, that there has been a worrisome and astronomical increase in the use of fake news and disinformation, making this a clear and present danger to the success of the elections. This increase is undoubtedly the work of some destabilizing agents, some of them linked to the opposition.
”Their sole aim is to destabilize the electoral process and plunge the nation into crisis,” he added.
He reaffirmed that some miscreants with access to phones and data would not be permitted to destabilize the nation led by President Muhammudu Buhari’s administration.
The government is searching for the best ways to ensure that the agents of destabilization do not obstruct the success of the elections with their shady use of fake news and disinformation, he added as he issued a warning to those who spread it.