Daily Times

During a virus, outbreak, bogus and phony information can be more destructive than the coronavirus itself.

Pakistan’s struggle against frightful coronavirus has many impediments and obstacles – A large crowd, an ineffectual infrastructure of the health system as our neighbor countries, failed to control over coronavirus. Moreover, usual foes are rearing their heads: bogus information and false news.

Epidemiologists believe the COVID-19 virus is more acute than SARS or MERS since the virus has been identified first, more than 100,000 people affected by this virus.

Recently Pakistan reported one more confirmed case of Coronavirus in Sindh province as per the health department Sindh. Personal Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Zafar Mirza said in an earlier press conference that the total number of cases is now raised to 19 with one patient discharged from a hospital as recovered from a virus.

Pakistan has temporarily stopped entry into the Iran and Afghanistan borders, with the Ministry of health also advised PIA to deferred their flights till 31st march. However, the country’s stock exchange jumped to its lowest level since the suspicions of the disease.

Assuredly, the terror of the acute infection is affecting events and groups around the globe, from the cancelation of football, cricket matches, and colloquia to the closure of all public parks. Still, the more concerning and absurd thing is several rumors and false assertions about coronavirus have seemed online and hit hundreds of shares and the choice of words also stoking fear in our community.

According to WHO ( World Health Organization) and UNICEF, media should follow the plausible pattern of words while reporting any coronavirus news to the public because the choice of words might fuel anguish to people, and the lexicon mayhap dampens the people to hide their illness. Media houses need to disseminate information regarding COVID-19 certainly so that they can encourage people to get screened, examined and isolated, or discredit them to the extent that they not only hide their illness from health authorities.

Only share the accurate do and don’ts, precautionary measures while reporting and sharing any information regarding coronavirus. Still, woefully, some people are speculating and spreading unfounded rumors on social apps that are misleading our audience.

Usually, we don’t see such vast levels of sham information around health issues in Pakistan. Earlier, we would get hardly one or two messages a month on health issues that we would fact curb. Now, we get up to ten to fifteen forward messages every day, much of it on coronavirus.

Bogus information about coronavirus vaccine and its cure is ludicrous and misleading millions of people over the internet. The fakery rumors consciously creating the situation of anarchy and sparking the angst in our society.

One such rumor on social media, which is claiming that China respiratory experts found the vaccine to cure the acute coronavirus infection just by rinse their mouths out, got almost 5 thousand hits on social media.

Not just this, but on WhatsApp people received thousands of messages about coronavirus treatment by onion and only by drinking water every 5 minutes, which is quite repugnant like people don’t feel shame to share such bogus news without authentic source.

Another more pernicious type of viral trend on WhatsApp where several videos are circulating that shows scenes of human bodies lying on roads – to show how fast coronavirus affects the human body, which is extremely condemnable plus this is also creating terror in our society. Moreover, some people also spreading rumors to not to take Chicken for at least 90 days as Chicken may spread the coronavirus.

PPA (Pakistan Poultry Association) talked to media and made a statement on misleading rumor is being circled nowadays on social apps regarding the presence of Corona Virus in Chicken.

The Association vigorously rebukes this baseless propaganda against the Poultry Goods and elucidates that the rumor is fake and baseless. The Corona Virus has not been found in Chicken in our country. Moreover, Poultry has not been reported to be involved in the transmission covid to humans so far in any part of the world.

Therefore, chicken meat is healthful, nutritious, and innocuous for the customers. The chicken fanatics may continue to consume chicken meat without any fear.

Moreover, as per details, some media houses also spreading bogus news that (PSL 5) Pakistan Super League matches likely to be shifted from Karachi after nine coronavirus cases reported in the center. But, the Information Minister Sindh Syed Nasir Hussain Shah said on media briefing that the provincial administration would hold a thermal screening procedure and provide sanitizers to the public who come to the Stadium Karachi to see the (PSL V) 2020 matches, confirming that the matches will be held as per planned.

For controlling this chaos of misinformation, the Government Authorities should set up a rapid response against this propaganda by approaching the FIA Cyber Crime wing because fake news circulates quicker and more easily than coronavirus itself, and is equally as critical.

The Federal Government should also work with telecom networks to spread and to highlight the effectiveness of adopting protective stratagems and measures to prevent getting the new coronavirus, as well as early screening, examining, and treating coronavirus and its updates as a caller tune for smartphone users before any further damage.

One important message that everyone needs to draw from the record accurately is to create a healthy environment that is free of the angst of coronavirus, and its impact can be addressed and ranted openly, sincerely, and efficiently. However, the media and the individuals need to be fed with accurate and authentic information about the disease by a single source, rather than multiple sources.

The writer can be reached @GoStudyFaran