Kwara State government has dismissed reports that nine state local government councils are in the grip of bandits as false and politically motivated.
In a statement on Tuesday by Commissioner for Communications, Mrs. Bolanle Olukoju, the government stated that no part of the state is under any form of siege and attributed the spread of deliberately false information to opposition elements in a bid to create fear among people.
We wish to alert the public against some falsehood of nine local government areas in Kwara State being under siege by bandits. This is completely untrue. None of the local government areas in the state is under siege,” the statement read.
Olukoju also accused some of the opposition groups within and beyond the state of having perpetrated the false reports. “We have reasons to believe that these elements are the cyber propagandists and the equivalents of bandits, because they help propagate fear to the people with false news,” she explained.
The commissioner also blamed Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi for circulating the false information on his social media platforms. “We regretfully note that Mr. Peter Obi has used his social media platforms to spread such false news. This is not what we expect from him as a statesman. We call upon Mr. Peter Obi to remove the post since it is entirely fake and inappropriate,” the statement stated.
Olukoju called on the public not to go about spreading unverified reports that would create panic and make it difficult for the operations of the security agencies. “This irresponsible behavior is making life difficult for the security forces who have enough to do,” she said.
The government assured citizens that the security agencies are still on high alert and still working towards ensuring peace and safety in every nook and cranny of Kwara State.
