Onuminya Innocent in Sokoto
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Farouk Yahaya, has called on social media influencers, bloggers and online journalists to rally support for the Nigerian Army and enlighten the general public on the dangers of misinformation and fake news for the general security of the country.
Yahaya made the call during a seminar organised for social media influencers, bloggers and online journalists by the Department of Civil Military Affairs, Nigerian Army, in Sokoto Friday.
The COAS said the seminar, with the theme: ‘The Nigerian Army’s Non-Kinetic Lines of Operation: Role of the Social Media’, is an avenue to interact with the civil populace to foster a harmonious and cordial civil-military relation.
Represented by the Chief of Civil Military Affairs, Maj. Gen. Marcus Kyangye, Yahaya added that the seminar, which started in 2018, has achieved its desired goals.
He enjoined the media to see the military as partners and avoid reports that could portray the institution in bad light.
The COAS maintained that the seminar became imperative having understood that millions of Nigerians rely on social media platforms as their source of information, hence the need for the influencers and online journalists to fact- check every information at their disposal before sharing same on their various platforms and websites.
On his part, the Executive Director, Security Affairs Limited, a group partnering the Nigerian Army on the training, Austin Peacemaker, said a lot of issues that would have snowballed into protracted face-off between the military and public have been resolved amicably as a result of public enlightenment.
He implored the media to take advantage of the robust platform created to ensure that security reports are handled more professionally as that would further engender peace in the country.
Earlier, the Chairman, Conference of Civil Society of Nigeria (CCSN), Adams Otaku, urged Nigerians to support the Nigerian Army to enable them defeat the common enemies of the country.
He noted that since the “pen is mightier than the gun”, there is the need to support the Nigerian Army in any media reportage.
He maintained that what resulted in the genocide in Rwanda was fake news and reckless reportage of the media.
He stated that with the support of Nigerians, the Nigerians Army will soon triumph over the security challenges facing the country.
