Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed has called on the media to be circumspect as they exercise their freedom on the job, taking into cognisance our national unity and security.
The Minister who was represented by Mr. Oladipo okunnu, a Director in the Ministry of Information and Culture disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja at a one symposium with the theme Information as a public good.
He said the Government sees the media as partners in progress in our collective quest to fulfil that which the founding fathers toiled and bled for.
The minister reminded the audience that fake news, misinformation and hate speech can lead to civil unrest and also impact negatively on our national cohesion, hence we must eschew this practice.
We must at all times note that safeguarding our nationhood and positioning our country and citizens for true development and growth must remain sacrosanct. We will continue to support the media in this regard.
“I want to reiterate my call to the media to set up a desk to fact-check all information at their disposal before dissemination.
I have observed that some media outfits have kick-started this process and I commend them greatly for this patriotic act. I urge others to emulate this worthy example by setting up this desk.”
Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary Nigeria Press Council Francis Nwosu also urged journalists to adhere strictly to social responsibility while on the job.
He said where a journalist is in doubt of the facts of the issues, better to stay away from the piece.
The symposium was organised by Ministry of information and culture, the National Broadcasting Commission in conjunction with Nigeria press Council.
