The Federal Government of Nigeria praised social media giant Meta on Wednesday for its plan to stop misinformation and hate speech on its platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, before the general elections in 2023.
This was said by Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, at the 12th edition of the “PMB Administration Scorecard Series (2015-2023)” in Abuja.
As Nigeria’s national elections in 2023 draw near, he advised other social media companies like Twitter, TikTok, and Telegram to follow Meta’s lead and organize teams to combat false information.
“I’ve given it my all in seven and a half years,” Buhari says.
“Respected ladies and gentlemen, during one of our earlier discussions here, I warned about the threats disinformation and fake news pose to the 2023 elections. As with violence, insecurity, buying votes, attacks on INEC facilities, etc., I said that the growing use of fake news and misinformation by some political actors and some media was a clear and present danger to the success of the elections.
“In this regard, I want to acknowledge Meta’s announcement that it will take specific actions to safeguard the credibility of the upcoming elections. Meta is the company that owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
Particularly, Meta outlined the steps it intends to take to thwart misinformation and increase the transparency of political advertising. Before, during, and after the elections, the corporation made this commitment.
This is great, and it fits with our view that platform owners should do a lot to stop false information, hate speech, and other harmful ideas from spreading on their sites.
“Meta has shown a strong sense of responsibility, and we hope the business will keep its word.”
We also implore the owners of other platforms, such as Google (which owns YouTube and other services), ByteDance (which owns TikTok), Twitter, and the Telegram Group Inc. (which owns Telegram Messenger), to follow Meta’s lead and take proactive measures to stop the spread of false information, misinformation, and hate speech on their respective platforms before, during, and after the 2023 elections.
On June 4, 2021, the Nigerian government halted Twitter’s operations, claiming that the service’s “continuous use” could “undermine Nigeria’s corporate existence.” On January 13, 2022, the administration, however, decided to end the suspension.
