NCCE Boss raises concerns about the blossoming trend of mis/disinformation and fake news

Beyond elections, misinformation, disinformation, and hate speech have become very powerful weapons employed by individuals and groups with diabolic agenda to destabilize the democratic system of governance practiced by countries globally, including Ghana. This social vice has become a source of worry for Chairman of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), Ms. Kathleen Addy.

She expressed this concern in her opening remarks during a two-day workshop organized by the Commission in partnership with the French Embassy for some of its members of staff, as part of capacity enhancement interventions.

Ms. Addy, in her remarks, could not emphasize enough how information disorder has been weaponized, indicating that the political instability recorded in some African countries is partly fueled by this atrocity. She also highlighted how technological advancement has facilitated the instantaneous widespread of such inaccurate or malicious information.

The Chairman further asserted, Ghana ought to be more alert and rapt about this creeping menace, explaining that following the progressive penetration of technology, the citizenry are a more susceptible target for originators and peddlers of false news comparative to populations in the first world countries.

Ms. Kathleen Addy, stressing on the essence of the workshop, pointed out that combating misinformation, disinformation, and fake news has become a core mandate of the Commission because “information is our tool of engagement in ensuring that we carry out our mandate, hence any threat against it must be countered accordingly”, she stated.

“In Rwanda, it took something as basic as radio, which provided a platform for inciting messages to trigger a frenzy killing”, Ms. Addy recounted, putting across the urgency in curtailing information disorder in this digital age.

The Chairman rounding up her address, charged Ghanaians to brace up and invest all efforts towards sustaining our democracy. She also expressed profound gratitude to the French Embassy for their tremendous support and contribution to this worthy course, while hoping for more of such collaborations in the future.

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