The Coalition for Change and Transparency (CCT) has accused the Rivers state Governor, Nyesom Wike of allegedly sponsoring propaganda and fake news against the Nigerian Army during the just concluded Governorship and State Assembly elections.

Coalition for Change and Transparency (CCT)

The group claimed that in a bid to undermine the military’s exceptional and harmless conduct at the polls, that the Rivers Governor and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) resorted to what it described as cheap blackmails.

In a press conference in Abuja, Monday, CCT’s President, Danesi Momoh, alleged that the governor’s latest plot was not strange to it, claiming the governor had before now, tried but failed to induce the military personnel to rig the elections in favour of the PDP.

According to the group, Wike’s motive was purely to manipulate the outcome of the elections and when that wasn’t possible, he resorted to propaganda.

According to it, “During the state elections, fake news was deployed as a propaganda weapon against the military by those who felt they were unable to rig or manipulate the elections because of the critical role the military was playing.

“Interestingly, such fake news was targeted at areas where the military had successfully prevented violence from spiralling out of control.

“Considering that fake news is now recognized globally as a weapon, and knowing the damages that could result from its deployment, the Coalition for Change and Transparency (CCT) reviewed instances of the use of fake news against the Nigerian Military with a view to identifying those that deployed it, those that exploited it, those that benefit from it and possibly understand the intents of those in the fake news chain.

“We have identified that cyber operatives of the opposition, notably the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), are behind the production, distribution and promotion of misleading content using new media and social media as vehicles of delivery.

“In some instances, such contents get into the mainstream media, whose credibility and traditional status and believability are exploited to confer credibility on the lies being told by the propagandists. It is most unfortunate that even these cyber operatives and the opposition are being used in the fake news chain as the real culprit are foreign operatives that exploit such content.

” We see it as a deliberate and calculated attempt to cause violence against the military such that the situation will quickly degenerate to a point where violent anti-military protests will bring down the government and cause constitutional crisis for the country.

The Federal Government owes it a duty to Nigerians, who were unnecessarily terrorized by the fake news, to ensure that the consular staff that were behind the offensive tweet are recalled by their country. This will also show that Nigeria will not tolerate undue interference by foreigners in the country’s affairs.”