A human rights organisation, Human Rights Writers Association (HURIWA) has debunked media reports that a governor was filmed receiving a bribe of $5million from contractors.
In a statement through its National Coordinator and Media Affairs Director, Emmanuel Onwubiko and Zainab Yusuf respectively on Wednesday, HURIWA said it was unethical to publish the purported video without authenticating the source.
HURIWA also states that it has written the Nigerian Press Council, the ombudsman for the press, and plans to write the professional body for online publishers to probe the medium if it fails to provide “irrefutable evidence including verified forensic investigative findings to conclusively affirm the authenticity of that suspected fake news.”
HURIWA asserted that the report in the social media was being unethically used by a former governor of Kano State to blackmail the said incumbent governor.
“Our team of forensic media analysts have thoroughly gone through that sensational story and found several elements that show that the story is not only fake but a product of pure political blackmail which must not be allowed to be swept under the carpets,” the statement read.
