By Yakubu Salisu, Kano
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has accused the Federal Government of creating panic and igniting tension ahead of a planned nationwide protest.
HURIWA urged Federal Government officials to provide responsible leadership, avoiding the dissemination of unsubstantiated claims and false intelligence regarding the peaceful protests planned by aggrieved Nigerians against bad governance, corruption, and hunger.
The association called on President Bola Tinubu to rein in his appointees and stop the spread of misinformation that is causing public panic and tension.
“The fear by the central and state governments about the imminent nationwide protests, said to commence on August 1st, has led several officials to continuously stoke social tensions with unscientific and unacceptable statements and claims,” HURIWA stated in a release signed by its national coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko.
HURIWA’s statement follows an appeal by the Minister of State for Youth Development, Olawande Ayodele, who urged Nigerian youths not to be influenced by social media content, which he claimed could incite unrest. Ayodele made this appeal during a courtesy visit by the Renewed Hope Ambassadors of Nigeria, led by veteran Nollywood actor Zack Orji, in Abuja.
The minister claimed that much of the social media content is fabricated by politicians to tarnish the Tinubu administration’s reputation.
HURIWA countered, “The persistent dissemination of misinformation by government officials, aimed at demonizing the constitutionally guaranteed right to peaceful demonstrations, has contributed to the heightened state of fear, apprehension, and panic among Nigerians. Government officials should act as stabilizing forces rather than agents of misinformation.”
The association added that Ayodele’s claim that critics of the government are spreading false information on social media is not entirely accurate, citing the National Bureau of Statistics, which has officially designated Nigeria as the poverty capital of the world, with over 133 million people living in multidimensional poverty.
Credit: Kano Times