Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, has urged Nigerians to resist the temptation of posting or sharing unverified election results on social media.
The minister gave the admonition after casting his vote in the presidential and national assembly elections, in Kwara on Saturday.
Speaking with journalists at his polling unit, Mohammed said media organisations across the country must avoid fake news.
He also appealed to media houses to act responsibly in publishing or broadcasting election results.
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“You don’t have to post election results without checking the source and the best way and most authentic is to hear from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
“The media houses should abide by the National Broadcasting Commission’s (NBS) regulations regarding the announcement of election results.
“What we have noticed in the past 20 years is that election violence does not start during voting but it is at the point of collation or announcement of results that violence starts.
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“False news is a fuel of this kind of violence because if you post false results from a particular unit and it is at variance with the authentic result by INEC, that would lead to violence.”
Mohammed enjoined eligible voters and party agents to wait patiently until the presiding officer announced the results and they should cross-check the same before transmission.
He said party agents should be vigilant and show a lot of responsibility.
The minister also said the process was peaceful as there was a massive turn-out of voters and he was satisfied.
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“What struck me most is the turn-out, the young, old, strong, the physically challenged men and women, they all came out to cast their votes, ” the minister added.
“You can see the determination and resolve on their faces in an atmosphere of conviviality. I hope that it will be the same atmosphere and ambience in every other polling unit,” he said.
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