After several minutes of reviewing reports indicating that the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, was battling with severe health challenges, the lawmakers in the red chamber have requested that the Federal Government investigate the source of the story.
The lawmakers, who condemned the reports, added that the investigation by the government through the Office of the National Security Adviser would unravel the author and expose the truth behind the report, which they described as fake.
This resolution was adopted on Tuesday during plenary following a point of order raised by a lawmaker, Titus Zam, arguing that reports circulated on media platforms that Akpabio suffered a health emergency and was rushed to a hospital in London, United Kingdom.
Zam, while presenting the bill, stressed that such misinformation is unacceptable, considering that the reports and subsequent ones could trigger unrest in the country.
The lawmaker urged that the perpetrators be arrested and prosecuted in accordance with the country’s law, saying this will serve as a deterrent to others.
In his response, the President of the Senate, who presided at plenary, said it was becoming increasingly difficult to regulate what the media publishes, particularly as it relates to politicians, describing content on some platforms as “garbage in, garbage out”.
