The Kwara State Commissioner for Communications, Hon. Bolanle Olukoju, has warned that era of peddling fake news in the state is nearing its end, as state government is working assiduously at implementing more measures to curb it and stop spreading unfounded rumour among the good people of the State.
Olukoju stated this during an interface with Press Secretaries across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), at the Ministry’s Conference Room.
She said the menace of fake news needs being nipped in the bud, failure of which could be of devastating impact on societal values and progress.
Olukoju said: “So far, the state government has taken various measures to curb fake news, part of which suspected carriers were apprehended by law enforcement Agents. We have therefore instructed Press Secretaries to report activities of MDAs not later than an hour after the event, in order to own the narrative.
“Furthermore, they are to attach their phone contacts to their press releases, for further clarifications from members of the public. I must be quick to add that, feedback from this measure has been tremendous.”
Speaking further on the new measure, “we are currently collating all the official social media handles of all MDAs. After collation, we will share them with the public, with the admonition that any news about the state government not reported from any of these handles should be considered as fake. That way, we take control of the narratives of our activities,” Olukoju disclosed.
The Commissioner however assured Press Secretaries of supports from the Ministry, admonishing them to take advantage of her open door policy to share challenges, areas of strength and weaknesses, so as to rob minds together on likely solutions.
“The Ministry is currently working on organizing in-house trainings on some areas of interest for Press Secretaries to achieve efficiency in service delivery.”
In his remarks, Director of Information Services, Alhaji Abdulganiyu Atere, appreciated the Commissioner for creating time to share innovative ideas with Press Secretaries in the state, to aid their productivities.
Reacting to the Commissioner’s address, the Communication Officer, KWARA FADAMA, Dr. Sangodare Ayinla, commended the Commissioner for coming up with different innovative ideas to ease the work situation of press secretaries.
