The Nigerian government has insisted that social media should be regulated to checkmate fake news.
Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, made the remark while referring to the End SARS protests.
Speaking when he appeared before the House Committee on information, National Ethics and Values to defend the 2021 proposed budget of his ministry, Mohammed warned that Nigeria is sitting on a keg of gunpowder if the issue of fake news is not urgently addressed.
He said, “The biggest challenge facing Nigeria today is fake news and misinformation. Based on that, we dedicated an entire National Council on Information’s meeting to that issue, after which we launched a national campaign against fake news in July 2018.
“We said, then, that the next war will be fought without a shot being fired, but with the use of fake news. We didn’t stop there. We went on a tour of all media houses to solicit their support in the fight against fake news.”
During the End SARS protest, several people were reportedly shot dead at the Lekki toll gate in Lagos State.
However, the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu had confirmed only one death as a result of the shooting.
On Tuesday, the Governor of Ogun State, Dapo Abiodun had claimed that only two deaths were recorded during the incident at Lekki toll gate.
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