Lai Mohammed, the minister of information and culture, has warned that 2023’s budget for his ministry’s efforts to combat hate speech and fake news will fall short of expectations.
This was said by the minister on Tuesday when he testified in support of the 2023 budget proposal before the Senate Committee on Information alongside the leaders of the agencies under his ministry.
Lai Muhammed also revealed that the recent terror alert issued by the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and others in Nigeria had a terrible impact on the country’s economy and reputation.
He pleaded with the Committee led by Senator Danladi Sankara to give his ministry the necessary funding to combat false information, misinformation, and hate speech, the most recent of which was the terror alert that the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and other countries raised in Nigeria.
The 2023 budget includes N81.7 million for the ministry’s efforts to combat fake news.
The Information Ministry is one that ought to have enough funding and not experience annual budget decreases.
“The terror alert issued against Nigeria by the United States and a few other nations was refuted, but it was not effectively handled in terms of placing things in right context, which is causing the incorrect perception to become a reality.
Because of the annual budget cuts, the Ministry is even less able to carry out its fundamental duties of keeping Nigerians informed about the government’s stance on pressing problems.
“Honorable Senators, Regarding yearly budget cuts, I’m very sorry because they’re becoming worse and worse by the hour.
“A worrying illustration of this is the fact that, despite the Information Ministry receiving N2.5 billion for capital expenses in 2022, N869 million, or one-third of it, is designated for a similar purpose in the budget proposal for 2023.
Because it appears to be the primary organization bearing the weight of the government’s cash shortage, this is tremendously depressing to the Ministry, he said.
However, since the capital vote portion of the federal budget itself decreased from N2.5 trillion to N1 trillion, Senator Danladi Sankara, the Chairman of the Committee, reminded the minister that annual budget reductions are not just limited to the Information Ministry but also affect all MDAs generally.
Senator Ibrahim Abdullahi Danbaba, a member of the Committee, gave him the assurance that the Ministry of Advocacy will be given budgetary votes to support the 2023 general elections.
