Ahead of the November 16 governorship election in Kogi, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and other stakeholders have cautioned political actors against dissemination of fake news and hate speech which could undermine the integrity of the poll.
INEC’s Resident Electoral Commissioner in Kogi, Prof James Apam, gave the advice in Lokoja on Wednesday at a workshop organized by the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) on “Securing Elections from Fake News and Violence”.
Apam, who expressed concern over the increasing rate of fake news and disinformation being purveyed on social media platforms ahead of the November 16th governorship election, noted that such trend was inimical to the electoral process.
He, therefore, urged political parties and political actors to always verify the authenticity of information before pushing them out to the public domain.
Earlier, the Country Director, CDD, Idayat Hassan said the workshop was put together by its organisation in partnership with the National Democratic Institute and USAID, to discuss the role of political parties in tackling fake news, hate speech and ensuring peaceful election in Kogi.
NDI Programme Director, Raymond Esebagbon, cautioned against online violence and campaigns targeted at women who indicate interests to contest political positions.
On his part, CDD Project Officer, Austin Aigbe urged political parties and actors to focus on issue-based campaigns rather than dissipating energy spreading fake news and hate speech during the electioneering.
Kogi State Police Commissioner, CP Hakeem Busari, urged political actors and their supporters not to see election as “do-or-die affair”.
The CP, who was represented by the DCP in charge of Operations at the police command, advised political parties and their supporters to avoid spreading fake news as that could promote electoral violence.
