Religious leaders in Kano State have been urged to preach against fake news and encourage information verification ahead of the 2027 general elections to prevent misinformation from fuelling electoral violence and communal conflicts.
The call was made during a two-day workshop organised by ALKALANCI, a fact-checking and media literacy organisation, to strengthen the capacity of religious leaders to identify, verify and combat misinformation and disinformation.
The organisation’s Programme Manager, Bamas Victoria, said the initiative was aimed at equipping religious leaders with the skills to navigate the growing volume of information circulating on social media and other digital platforms.
According her, the widespread availability of mobile phones and internet access had made it easier for individuals to create and circulate unverified information without the editorial checks associated with traditional media.
She noted that misinformation had caused serious consequences, including health complications, deaths and communal conflicts, adding that its potential impact on the 2027 elections made the training particularly important.
According to her, the organisation adopted a train-the-trainer approach to enable participants to share the knowledge acquired with members of their communities.
She said religious leaders were selected because of the trust and influence they command in society, stressing that fact-checking organisations alone could not debunk false information at the speed it spreads.
“Our objective is to build people’s capacity so that when false information circulates, they can recognise it, understand that it is false and avoid acting on it,” she said.
Also speaking, ALKALANCI’s Editor, Alhassan Bala, urged the public to verify information before sharing it, while calling on journalists to uphold professional standards and avoid publishing unverified reports in the bid to break news.
He also urged media organisations to establish dedicated fact-checking desks or collaborate with independent fact-checking organisations.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Kano State Chapter of the Nigerian Council of Ulama, Sheikh Ibrahim Khalil, represented by Sheikh Abubakar Tofa, cited Qur’anic injunctions, particularly Surah Al-Hujurat, verse 6, which directs believers to verify information before acting on it.
He pledged the council’s support for efforts to tackle misinformation and disinformation in the state.
