The Consultant on Communications and Strategy to Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, Kenny Okolugbo, has declared that his principal is very healthy amid online speculation about his ill health.
Niaja News recalls that SaharaReporters had on Monday claimed that Akpabio collapsed and was flown on a private jet to London for treatment.
The online news platform alleged that this situation kept Akpabio away from official duties, including the interactive session on the Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper held on Wednesday.
However, during an interview on Channels Television’s ‘Morning Brief’ programme on Thursday, Okolugbo described the reports as baseless, stressing that Akpabio is actively attending to his official duties.
He said, “The Senate President is very healthy. You saw him; he’s been attending sessions, and that answers the question.”
Okolugbo cited similar false claims about the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, who was reportedly incapacitated but was reported to have commissioned projects the next day and participated in live programmes.
He stressed, “Even Minister Wike was affected by similar rumours. One day they said he was in a coma or had suffered a stroke, and the next day he was commissioning projects and appeared on a live programme.”
Akpabio’s aide called for stronger social media regulation to curb the spread of misinformation.
Okolugbo added, “We must regulate social media. Everybody’s a publisher online, but they don’t seem to understand that the law prohibits sharing information you are not sure of.”