“I explained that, even if I managed to divert every kobo of it to my personal account, it would take at least 104 years to save the sum of 1.3 billion dollars being peddled that I stole,” he said.

Mohammed added: “My wife insisted that the whole world believed the story and that her friends had as a result, besieged her with all kinds of requests.

“She said every effort on her part to deny the existence of this foreign account only succeeded in depicting her in the minds of her friends as a selfish, greedy, and uncaring friend.

“Is my wife truly convinced of my innocence? The answer is in the wind!.”

Mohammed reiterated that social media remained the platform of choice for the purveyors of fake news, anti-state groups, anarchists, secessionists, terrorists, and bandits.

He recalled that while in government, his ministry uncovered 476 online publications that were dedicated to spreading fake news against the Buhari administration.

Mohammed specifically recalled the fake news that the former president had died while receiving treatment in a London hospital and was replaced by a clone called “Jubril from Sudan.”

According to him, the challenge of fake news continued up to the campaigns leading to the 2023 general elections, where President Bola Tinubu became a target when videos and speeches attributed to him were manipulated and distorted.

He said the purveyors of fake news were relentless in their efforts to de-market the laudable policies and programmes of Tinubu’s administration.

Mohammed said fake news had become exponential through the use of Artificial Intelligence and deep learning techniques to create highly realistic fake or manipulated videos, audio recordings or images.

“The consequences of disinformation and misinformation are far-reaching.

“They undermine democratic processes, sow discord within communities, and pose significant threats to public health and safety.

“Today, even the media is at risk of losing its credibility because of the proliferation of fake news on social media.

“Therefore, the media, as custodians of the public trust, must take decisive action to combat the scourge of disinformation and misinformation,” he said.

Mohammed said that social media platforms and other intermediaries accountable for their role in amplifying disinformation and misinformation should be held responsible.

According to him, they should be checked through robust regulatory frameworks to curb the spread of false information while safeguarding freedom of expression.

He admonished social media platforms to prioritise the integrity of information over profit motives and take proactive measures to detect and remove harmful content from their platforms. (NAN)