The Minister of Youths and Sports Development, Mr. Sunday Dare, has called on Nigerians to save the nation, their careers, relationships and above all, lives, by not sharing information they are not sure of.
He made this call while delivering a goodwill message at a One -Day Symposium tagged, ‘Media and Information Literacy (MIL)’, organised by the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, in Abuja, recently.Â
The Minister who likened the case of Nigeria to that of Rwanda, who suffered the consequences of fake news and hate speech about 20 years ago, said that, if Nigeria is to be graded in the affairs of curbing the menace of fake news and hate speech, Nigeria is about 20–21 years too late in the business. On this note, he called on all Stakeholders in the Media Industry to always be very mindful of the content of information they disseminate to the public.Â
Similarly, the Minister of Women Affairs, Mrs. Pauline Tallen in her speech, inferred that, if women, youths and children who constitute a larger part of the nation’s population are well informed, the issue of hate speech and fake news was almost solved. She opined that since parents are usually role models to their children, parents should always endeavour to watch what they say in their presence.
She also enjoined Nigerians to form the habit of saying positive things about Nigeria rather than, laying emphasis on the negatives.
Other Stakeholders at the event agreed that since technology has provided tools for everyone to share information, there was then a greater need for Media Information Literacy.Â
It was noted that though everyone has the right to information and expression of individual opinion, the laws of the land must also be respected, by this we shall all live in peace, harmony and tranquility.
Justina Lami ObidaÂ
PEOI (Information )
For: Director (Information)
