The federal government of Nigeria has said that there are no plans to monitor the social media and phone calls of Nigerians.
A trending message which was ‘’falsely’’ attributed to the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, said there would be new communication regulations “from tomorrow”.
The message claimed the government would be monitoring phone calls and social media, warning Nigerians to be more careful of what they post or say on social media.
But the minister, through a statement signed by his spokesperson, Uwa Suleiman, dissociated himself from the message, saying it is fake news.
“The attention of the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami) has been drawn to a misleading message purportedly authored by him, currently trending on social media.
“The fake news is circulating a message which implies that all devices are now connected to the Ministry’s systems and that effective tomorrow, it will commence the recording of phone calls and the monitoring of all social media platforms and fora.
“The malicious message also further discourages citizens from sharing any messages or videos with political or religious content as it is now officially a crime and could even lead to arrest.
“The Honourable Minister enjoins all Nigerians, to disregard the propaganda which is aimed at inciting fear and creating public confusion,” the statement reads.