Nigerians from all walks of life have reacted to the ongoing plan by the federal government to regulate the social media, saying thedigital platforms keep them more informed than the traditional media of information.
They also noted that the social media have more impact on them as a way of keeping a tab of the political processes.
This is according to a recent NOI, CDD and Afrobarometer poll conducted in the wake of the planned social media regulation.
The poll noted that a good majority of Nigerians want unrestricted access to the internet and social media.
The poll noted that, “The level of support for unfettered internet and social media access in Nigeria is among the highest recorded across 18 African countries.
Among the two-thirds of Nigerians who are aware of social media, large majorities say these digital platforms keep people informed and enable them to have more impact on political processes.”
The poll further noted that while the majority of the people see the social media as making people more likely to believe fake news and be more intolerant of different opinions, it noted that positive views of its overall effects on society outnumber negative assessments by a ratio of 6 to 1.
The findings show that Nigerians are more likely to blame politicians for disseminating false information than social media users and activists.
Statistics show that about 63% of Nigerians say they are aware of social media and the awareness level increases with citizens’ level of education.
Among those who have heard of social media, 88% say it makes people more aware of current happenings and helps people get impacted about political processes positively.
