Former National Security Coordinator and ex-AU Special Representative for Counter-Terrorism Cooperation, Larry Gbevlo-Lartey, Esq., has stressed the need for innovative measures to control misinformation and disinformation before, during, and after the 2024 elections.
Speaking at “The Ghana Report Summit” in Accra on August 1, 2024, Gbevlo-Lartey emphasized that managing these risks is crucial for maintaining Ghana’s cherished peaceful co-existence.
Gbevlo-Lartey warned that misinformation and disinformation pose significant threats to national stability, potentially influencing public opinion, discrediting opponents, and affecting election outcomes.
He highlighted that Ghana is in an information age where access to social media is pervasive, and the speed of information spread, combined with anonymity, complicates security responses.
“We are indeed in an information age that is unfolding in digital space, access to which is highly pervasive among the general population all over the world. The ubiquitous global pervasiveness of access to social media with impact across regions of the world attests to this. The social media attributes of global anonymity, and speed of spread, also provide strands that immensely task the security response effort,” he said.
Gbevlo-Lartey called for greater engagement on the proposed National Action Plan to combat misinformation and disinformation, advocating for fairness in the election process to ensure the 2024 election results are credible and acceptable to all parties.
“Ghanaians wish that the 2024 elections would be transparent, and result in the declaration of credible results that reflect the will of the electorate and leave contestants with no choice but to accept the results,” he added.
Held at the Kempinski Hotel in Accra, under the theme “Dealing with Misinformation and Disinformation – Election 2024,” the summit brought together over 700 participants to address these critical issues.
Gbevlo-Lartey, in his opening remarks, urged the panelists to evaluate the threats and challenges of misinformation and disinformation, both domestically and globally, and to propose solutions that ensure transparent and credible elections.
Gbevlo-Lartey underscored the importance of balancing freedom of expression with public accountability, security, and stability, especially in the context of the upcoming elections.
He stressed the need for preventative measures that make the risks posed by misinformation and disinformation residual and inconsequential, ensuring that election outcomes are widely accepted.
“The solutions that you will seek to propose today, need necessarily take cognisance of this time frame within which compliance is to be exacted. You may therefore also want to consider innovative preventative measures that emphasize a transparent, free and credible election that reflects the will of the people, makes the risks posed by any misinformation and disinformation residual and inconsequential and thus leave the loser with no choice but to graciously accept the results,” he said.
As Ghana approaches the 2024 elections, the call for addressing misinformation and disinformation is seen as crucial for preserving the nation’s democratic integrity and peaceful co-existence.