Media
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Media organisations as well as individuals have warned the Nigerian Senate against a proposed bill which seeks to censor online media in the country
| By Anayo Ezugwu | Dec 14, 2015 @ 01:00 GMT |
REACTIONS have continued to trail the proposed bill by the Senate to censor the media. The Nigerian Union of Journalists, NUJ, Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, GOCOP, media professionals and non-governmental organisations have condemned the attempt by the Senate to cage the media in the country. They urged media professionals in the country to rise up against any anti-media bill.
The NUJ said the Bill was an attempt to clamp down on journalists, social media and petition writers. The union called on reporters in the Senate and House of Representatives to reject ‘this anti-media bill.’ In a letter released on Thursday, December 3, by Shuaibu Usman Leman, national secretary, NUJ, said: “We consider this bill as abominable and capable of causing irreparable damage to the nation’s quest for credible democracy.”
According to Usman, it is untenable for Bala Ibn Na’Allah, a senator, to equate the bill to the Freedom of Information, FOI, Act. “The FOI Act is not meant as a means for journalists to pry into areas wrongly perceived as government secrets or exposes the privacy of citizens; rather it should be seen as a means for the masses of this country to demand for how they are governed and to hold such leaders accountable. The NUJ believes that information participation by all is necessary for effective democracy and the failure of the state to provide unhindered access to information can lead to monumental corruption and abuse of rights of citizens.”
The union warned lawmakers and government functionaries against playing “dirty politics” with important national issues.
On its part, Guild of Corporate Online Publishers, GOCOP, said the plans of the Senate to censor the media mostly the online media in the country would not work. Malachy Agbo, president, GOCOP, told Realnews that the union was ready to join other unions such as the NUJ in fighting against the bill, which has passed second reading at the National Assembly. “Anything the Senate is doing to kill the press in Nigeria will not be acceptable because the Nigeria 1999 Constitution guarantees freedom of information and speech. So anything that will jeopardise that we will fight for it,” he said.
Reno Omokri, former special assistant on new media to former President Goodluck Jonathan, appealed to the Senate to do away with the bill, stressing that freedom of information was a necessity in any democracy. Omokri in a series of tweets via his handle, @renoomokri argued that the eighth National Assembly led by Bukola Saraki, should take a cue from ex-president Jonathan who faced false reports, yet signed the FOI bill to law and never tampered with free speech. He added that throughout the five-year reign of his former boss, no one was jailed for speaking his mind.
“I call on the Senate to take a cue from ex-President Jonathan who faced false reports yet never tampered with Free Speech. Jonathan, at huge political cost to himself, signed Freedom of Information to law. Senate should let sleeping dogs lie. Throughout Jonathan’s presidency, no one was jailed for speaking his mind. The Senate should not reverse that legacy,” Omokri said.
He urged the Senate to allow sleeping dogs lie, stressing that he was not sure that President Muhammadu Buhari would assent to the bill if passed by the lawmakers. “What I know is that ex-President Jonathan would never sign such a law if it passes and I believe President Buhari won’t either. To the Social Media community: When you cook soup with cannibals you have no one to blame if they use you as meat,” he said.
The Senate is seeking to pass a two-year jail term for any person who makes allegation or publishes any statement or petition in the newspaper, radio or medium of whatever description against another person, institutions of government or any public office holder.
The bill also prescribes that anybody or group of persons who sends any false text message or post false message on the social media against another person shall be jailed for two years upon conviction by the law court. The bill titled, “A Bill for an Act to Prohibit Frivolous Petitions and other Matters Connected therewith,” was sponsored by Ibn Na’Allah. It compels petitioners to accompany their petitions with sworn court affidavit, failure of which attracts a six-month imprisonment upon conviction.
The bill also provides for an option of N4 million for persons convicted of false newspaper, radio and television statements and N2 million for offenders of false phone text messages or messages on Facebook, twitter, Instagram, or WhatsApp. “Where any person in order to circumvent this law makes any allegation and or publish any statement, petition in any paper, radio, or any medium of whatever description, with malicious intent to discredit or set the public against any person or group of persons, institutions of government, he shall be guilty of an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to an imprisonment term of two years or a fine of N4 million,” the bill stated.
On the social media, the bill read: “Where any person through text message, tweets, WhatsApp or through any social media post any abusive statement knowing same to be false with intent to set the public against any person and group of persons, an institution of government or such other bodies established by law shall be guilty of an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to an imprisonment for two years or a fine of N2 million or both fine and imprisonment.”
The bill said it would be an offence for any petition to be submitted without a sworn affidavit from the law court. “Notwithstanding anything contained in any law, it shall be an unlawful to submit any petition, statement intended to report the conduct of any person for the purpose of an investigation, inquiry and or inquest without a duly sworn affidavit in the High Court of a state or the Federal High Court confirming the content to be true and correct and in accordance with the Oaths Act.
“Any petition and or complains not accompanied by a sworn affidavit shall be incompetent and shall not be used by any government institution, agency or bodies established by any law for the time being enforced in Nigeria. Any person who unlawfully uses, publish or cause to be published any petition, complaint not supported by a dully sworn affidavit shall be deemed to have committed an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to an imprisonment for six months without an option of fine. Any person who acts, uses, or cause to be used any petition or complaints not accompanied by dully sworn affidavit shall be deemed to have committed an offence and upon conviction, shall be liable to an imprisonment for a term of two years or a fine of N200,000.00 or both.”
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