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Ahead of the Edo State governorship election scheduled for Sep. 21, 2024, the Nigerian Fact-Checkers’ Coalition (NFC) has activated its situation rooms to tackle misinformation and disinformation.
The NFC situation room will operate from two command centres in Abuja and Lagos, where members will monitor, verify, and debunk misleading content that could incite violence, discourage voters, or damage public trust in the electoral process.
NFC Coordinator and FactCheckHub Editor, Opeyemi Kehinde, emphasised the coalition’s readiness to counter misinformation that may influence the Edo election.
“Our team is prepared to fact-check false information that could potentially affect the election outcome, ensuring that Edo residents can make informed decisions based on accurate information,” Mr Kehinde said.
Africa Check Nigeria Editor, David Ajikobi, highlighted the crucial role of fact-checking in protecting the integrity of the election. “False narratives can mislead voters, and with INEC raising concerns about misinformation ahead of the Edo election, we are carefully monitoring the situation. Our goal is to mitigate the impact of disinformation on the election process and outcome,” he stated.
Mr Ajikobi said the coalition deploying manpower and resources to monitor the Edo election underscores the importance of keeping the information space void of false and misleading narratives during elections.
“Elections provide the opportunity for the electorate to make important decisions that have real-life consequences. Voters should have accurate information about the candidates, parties, and the electoral process to help them make informed choices.”
DUBAWA Nigeria Editor, Kemi Busari, highlighting the importance, noted, “Election periods are a sensitive time marred with mis/disinformation. This level of disinformation requires coordinated efforts to combat, hence the need for collaborations such as this under the umbrella of the coalition. This collaboration has so far proven to be effective in combatting election-related mis/disinformation.”
The coalition’s fact-checking efforts will extend beyond the Edo election. It plans to intensify its activities for the upcoming Ondo State governorship election in November 2024.
About the Coalition
Since the NFC was established in June 2022, it has played a key role in ensuring credible elections by working alongside three International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) signatories: Africa Check, FactCheckHub, and DUBAWA. The coalition also includes organizations like the International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR), the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), and several prominent news platforms such as Premium Times, The Cable, and Daily Trust.
During Nigeria’s 2023 general elections, the NFC debunked a significant amount of false information. Their collaborative model, involving fact-checkers, data analysts, and social media experts, has since been adopted by other countries, including Kenya and South Africa.
