The federal government has assured Nigerians that it will not trample on their rights and press freedom in the fight against fake news and disinformation.

Information minister Mohammed Idris stated this in an interview in Abuja. He called on Nigerians to always “promote the truth and nothing but the truth.”

“We must be in the forefront of advocating for truthful information all the time. Everything that is fake should not be promoted. This is because it can lead to anarchy and destruction of lives and properties. And by the way, nobody will want his home, country, state or nation to be in tatters because somebody is encouraging fake news,” the minister explained.

Mr Idris stated, “Fake news should be condemned in all its ramifications. I have said that it is important for all of us to be careful in the way we navigate these waters. We know that we don’t want fake news.”

The minister further explained that people use many platforms to provide credible information, adding that such is desirable and should be emulated.

“So, we must collectively come together and see ways and means by which this fake news can be tackled without necessarily trampling on the rights of the people, free press and freedom of information,” he said.

The minister said Nigeria will key into the strategies and best practices to be adopted by the international community to curtail fake news vendors.

(NAN)