PLEASE! LET'S BE RESPONSIBLE SOCIAL MEDIA USERS
PLEASE! LET'S BE RESPONSIBLE SOCIAL MEDIA USERS
By:
Nurudeen Dauda
January 18, 2018
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To begin with, we are all victims of “sentiment". What is saddened to me is that even the so-called educated ones are as guilty as the so-called uneducated ones. In fact in most cases, the so-called educated ones are the ones fuelling sentiment for their selfish political agenda.
As a social media user he or she ought to be conscious of the fact that, there are people who do not share same religion, culture, and values with him or her and as such he or she should and or must not write or post something that will be injurious or harmful to other people. Let's be sensitive to other people's feelings.
Our ethnic and religious diversities, in my view , is not our problem. Our problems are fake religious scholars and ethnic entrepreneurs among us who use religion and ethnicity as political capital. No one chooses to be born as Hausa or Fulani or Yoruba or Igbo or Tiv and or Jukum etc. No one chooses to be born as a Northerner or Southerner.
Permit me to disagree with some fake scholars as well as ethnic champions who will often say that we are multi-ethnic as well as multi -religious as such we cannot co-exist peacefully among ourselves . We must be aware of the fact that India is the most multi-ethnic as well as religious country in the world.
India has more than one thousand ethnic groups and is the most multi religious country in the world yet India is relatively peaceful. Somalia as a country has people with same ethnic group, religion and even sect yet the country has been having a civil war of over 20 years. Nigeria is so mixed and fixed to the extent that, in my humble opinion, there is neither religious nor ethnic boundary with which to divide the country with.
No doubt, the youth are the dominant users of social or new media which is largely uncensored as well as unregulated. Without fear of contradiction, all age- groups in the society need peace , but in my humble view, the youth needs peace more than the older generation. For without peace their will be no future for the Youth. The youth needs peace for their education and above all their future development. The youth must shun the tendency of ethnocentrism.
The emergence of social media has made all and sundry a Journalist or an editor in his own right ignoring the fact that, a Journalist or an editor has a fundamental responsibility to the society as a source of information,enlightenment, education and above all of promoting peace and unity among its diverse people.
As a new media user, in my opinion , one has the responsibility of preaching peace, tolerance and accommodation among our diverse people. Let's preach peace and tolerance through social media. Let's cross check our facts before posting same. Let’s use social media to build bridges along ethno-religious lines rather than building walls or fences . Let’s give peace chance for our development and progress.
May God bless Nigeria!