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The Anambra State government has denied passing the purported new burial law that has been trending on social media and some national dailies since Monday.
The state Commissioner for Information, Law Mefor, in a statement made available to journalists, yesterday, described the report as false, baseless, and a deliberate act of misinformation.
Mefor said in the purported malicious new burial law, outrageous restrictions, including a ban on the use of cows and goats at condolence visits were imposed.
“This report is entirely false, baseless, and a deliberate act of misinformation. For the record: No new burial law has been passed by Governor Soludo’s administration. The subsisting Anambra Burial Law is the 2019 law signed by former Governor Willie Obiano.
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“The claims being circulated are not contained in any section of the 2019 Anambra Burial Law. The assertion that cows and goats are banned at condolence visits is a fabrication designed to mislead the public and incite unnecessary outrage,” the statement read.
The commissioner said it was disappointing and irresponsible that established media houses would abandon basic verification and become conduits for viral fake news.
He tasked journalists on accuracy, balance, and verification of claims before publication, adding that failure to do so would erode public trust and contribute to the spread of misinformation.
Mefor urged the public to disregard the fake news in its entirety, even as he urged media organisations to uphold professional standards and desist from publishing unverified reports that can cause public disaffection.
