Kwara govt moves against fake news, rumour peddling
The government of Kwara State stated that it is putting further measures into place to stop persons in the state from spreading false information and bogus rumors.
This was revealed during a meeting at the ministry’s Ilorin headquarters with press secretaries from several ministries, divisions, and agencies, led by Bolanle Olukoju, Commissioner for Communications.
Olukoju contends that the threat posed by fake news must be stopped immediately, as doing otherwise could have disastrous effects for advancement and society ideals.
The state administration has so far taken a number of actions to combat fake news, some of which involved law enforcement agents apprehending suspected carriers.
“As a result, we have given Press Secretaries instructions to own the story and disclose MDA activities no later than one hour following the occurrence.
In addition, they must include their phone numbers in their press releases so that the public can call them with any questions. I have to say right away that this measure has received a ton of feedback,” she said.
The commissioner went on to say, “We are currently collating all the official social media handles of all MDAs,” in reference to the new step. We will collate them and make them public, cautioning that any news regarding the state government not obtained from one of these handles need to be regarded as false. In this manner, we seize authority over the stories that surround our actions.
Nonetheless, the Commissioner reassured the press secretaries of the ministry’s assistance while cautioning them to utilize the open-door policy to discuss difficulties, strengths, and shortcomings and to gather ideas for potential remedies.
To increase service delivery efficiency, the Ministry is now planning internal training for press secretaries in a few targeted sectors,” she continued.
During his remarks, Abdulganiyu Atere, the Director of Information Services, expressed gratitude to the commissioner for making time to share creative ideas with state press secretaries in order to increase their productivity.
In response to the Commissioner’s speech, Kwara FADAMA, Sangodare Ayinla’s communication officer, praised the Commissioner for developing several creative solutions to improve the working conditions of
