FAKE NEWS: PROSECUTE OFFENDERS AS DETERRENT TO OTHERS….. UMUKORO TELLS AUTHORITIES
Fake news in the Nigeria social media space by unscrupulous elements without the recognizant knowledge in the practice and reportage of journalism by quacks; have been described as the bane of mistrust between the personnel of the Nigeria Police Force and the members of the public.
This was the position of Comrade Kelly Efemena Umukoro, President of the Youth Wing, Worldwide of the Urhobo Progress Union, the global umbrella body of the Urhobos.
Comrade Umukoro stated this recently while reacting to the unfortunate incident that resulted to the death of a mother and her toddler in an accident at Embrumede, in Warri delta state.
According to Comrade Umukoro, the authorities should, as a matter of national interest bring to book, social media influencers such as Israel Joe and others, who are fond of peddling fake news via their social media handles.
Responding to questions, the UPU Youth Wing (Worldwide) President noted that under the guise of the toga of social media influencers, persons without the prerequisite knowledge of the ethics of the journalism profession have rushed to print falsehood and fake news without recourse to verifying such information or news thereby, impacting negatively on society.
He accused one Israel Joe as being a major culprit in the report of the fake news on the woman and her young child in the unfortunate incident at Embrumede that saw youths in the vicinity burning down a police patrol vehicle.
“The prosecution of the likes of Israel Joe will serve as a deterrent and curb the spread of fake news and checkmate the excesses of poorly trained ‘social media influencers’ in the society”, Umukoro stressed.
“Fake news is creates unnecessary tension, anxiety and this can lead to break down of la and order in any society and as such, the authorities must be proactive in prosecuting anyone found wanting”.
“When I heard of the very incident at Embrumede and the torching of the Police patrol vehicle, I immediately directed Barrister Maxwell Ogedegbe, the Director General of the Actualization of Human Right to proceed to the Embrumede Police station.
Tasked on the efforts of the Delta state government to curb the activities of criminal elements in the state, especially as it relates to cultism, kidnapping and other social vices, Comrade Kelly Efemena Umukoro described the efforts of the state government under Senator Ifeanyi Okowa as very poor.
“The security structure in delta state is very poor and not capable of addressing the security challenges”, he said.
“Operation Delta Hawk, the state security outfit can best be described as a Hawk without feathers and cannot be trusted to contend with the criminals in the state. The governor must be decisive in his approach towards eradicating crime and criminality in Delta state”, he stated.
“After the #EndSars Protests that engulfed virtually every state of the federation, the Police personnel have not been keen in doing their constitutionally assigned duties. I want to appeal to them to please resume their duties as they youths only vented their anger that has spanned over twenty years”.
“The Police Force in Nigeria must be commended for their efforts no matter what as it is difficult to effectively police any society without proper equipment and morale boost. Government must provide for the police the necessary tools for them to be more effective in combating crime and criminality as that will motivate them to do their jobs as they should”.
Tasked on the activities of herdsmen in the state and their alleged involvement in the various crimes and criminality, the UPU Youth Wing Worldwide President called on the state and federal governments to be decisive in handling this issue lest it compels to citizens to adopt a ‘self-help’ approach in protecting themselves.
“The activities of these marauders must be checked otherwise there will be food scarcity in the country and I ma very sure that the government will not be able to handle that, especially now that the COVID-19 pandemic has virtually crippled economic activities”.
“The herdsmen must stop to roam our bushes and forests. Let them come into the cities and socialize with responsible citizens and stop all this criminal acts that have been associated to them”.
“We have had enough of the rape of our mothers. We will no longer tolerate these attacks, rape and plunder of our sweat especially the killings and kidnappings”, he warned.
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