Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State
‘Fake news now criminal offence in Ebonyi’ – Gov. Umahi
[From CHINEDU NWAFOR, Abakaliki]
Ebonyi Governor, David Umahi says it is now a punishable offence to indulge in spreading fake news in the State.
He said Ebonyi State had assented to its cybercrime law, adding that anyone found culpable must face the law.
Umahi who spoke in his offence on Wednesday vowed that era of spreading falsehood in any form was over.
The Governor was reacting to the arrest and detention of a former Programme Presenter in Ebonyi State Broadcasting Corporation (EBBC) Godffery Chikwere by the police.
Chikwere who was also a former Technical Assistant to Governor Umahi was arrested by the police following a petition against him by the state government over a post on his social media handle which the government said was in contravention of the new state cybercrime.
Umahi said, “I didn’t arrest Baby mouth, I didn’t arrest him. It is important to note now that we have a law on fake news. Both my journalists and aides should note that fake news coming from anybody is answerable and there is nothing wrong about this development. The federal government has its own, cybercrime law; and until we deploy this, our society will continue to go bad.
“You don’t just wake up and begin to tarnish people’s image. The young man is from Enugu and and they carried out the flag off of Army activities in Enugu state (referring to operation Golden Dawn, Enduring Peace and Still Water) and he didn’t comment on it. But when it was flagged off in Ebonyi, he now started to incite Ebonyi people against the Army so that the Army will now have confrontation with our people.
“It was done in Anambra, it was done in Enugu. Why is that it was done in Ebonyi and somebody from Enugu state who was hired to destroy the state will start commenting? People have been begging for his release but it is not in my hand, he must go to court. They can call me any name, I don’t care.”
