LAGOS, Nigeria – The European Union Election Observation Mission, EU EOM, has accused Festus Keyamo, former Minister of State for Labour and Employment, and Femi Fani-Kayode, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, of disseminating fake news during the 2023 general elections in Nigeria.
This allegation is part of the EU EOM’s report on the Nigerian elections, a copy of which has been submitted to the Secretary to the Federal Government, George Akume.
According to the report on Tuesday, July 4, 2023, Keyamo and Fani-Kayode misled Nigerians by propagating false information in the run-up to and during the elections.
The report emphasizes the role of prominent figures affiliated with political parties in the spread of misleading information.
One instance highlighted by the EU Observers was on February 12, 2023, when Festus Keyamo shared information from a questionable website that accused Peter Obi of bribery.
The information rapidly went viral but was debunked within a few hours.
Another example involved Femi Fani-Kayode, who on February 11, 2023, alleged that the PDP presidential candidate, Abubakar, had a clandestine meeting with serving military generals in Abuja.
Fani-Kayode accused Atiku of seeking to instigate chaos, provoke a coup d’état, and establish an unconstitutional order.
He disseminated this claim across various social media platforms, amassing 281.2k total impressions.
However, he subsequently posted that the Army had denied any such meeting taking place between its officers and Atiku.
The EU EOM report draws attention to the need for responsible communication, especially from public figures and political leaders, in safeguarding the integrity of the electoral process.
The spread of fake news can have detrimental effects on the credibility of the elections and the stability of the country.
The report is likely to prompt discussions on measures to combat the spread of fake news during critical events such as national elections.
