Safeguarding On-line Civic Space, (SOCS), has urged youths to fact-check post-election contents before sharing it on social media.

While addressing journalists yesterday in Lagos, Chairman of SOCS, Dr. Funmi Akinyele, said the political consciousness of youths is on the increase, adding that with authentic information, they can contribute meaningfully to the civic space.

He said, “We want to create a movement of young people who are educated on our constitution, voter rights and civil rights. We want them to think in an informed manner. If they are well-informed and well-educated, they will be able to speak out against fake news, and identify and curb misinformation and disinformation.

“The integrity of this year’s general elections was significantly tested in the online civic space as millions of Nigerians, particularly eligible voters, got their information from social media. As projected, the digital civic space played a crucial role in the decisions that a myriad of Nigerians took during the presidential and National Assembly elections held in February 2023 as well as the gubernatorial and State Houses of Assembly elections held in March 2023.

“Considering the ripples left behind by this menace of fake news during the last elections, the overarching goal of this project is to protect online civic space by combating voter misinformation and disinformation while improving access to accurate civic information inclusively,” Akinyele added.