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  • Updated: December 02, 2019

Senate Disavows Hate Speech Bill

Senate Disavows Hate Speech Bill

 

The Senate has distanced itself from the Anti-Hate Speech Bill saying it is not coming from the 9th Senate.

Acting spokesperson for the Senate, Senator Godiya Akwashiki, made it clear that the bill was not from the 9th Senate, and it was sponsored entirely by Deputy Chief Whip, Sabi Abdullahi.

He said,  “There is a statement credited to the spokesperson for the Peoples Democratic Party saying that the hate speech bill before us is a collaboration between the Senate and President Muhammadu Buhari to Islamise the country or make things happen the way he (Buhari) wants it. It (the statement) also claims that he (Buhari) is trying to bring the hate speech to enable him to achieve a third term. I’m happy that the sponsor of the bill is here. He has cleared the air. It is the right of a senator to sponsor a private member bill. We also have the executive bill but the hate speech bill before the Senate today is a private senator bill.  Mr President has nothing to do with it, and it also has nothing to do with the third term agenda.

“It is not also aimed at Islamise Nigeria. When the bill gets to the second reading, senators would have the opportunity to speak. They would scrutinise it and remove whatever they perceive offensive and insert those that are meant to protect the interest of Nigerians. I want to make it clear once again that the hate speech bill before the Senate is a private senator bill, not an executive bill.”

Sabi Abdullahi, who proposed the bill says that the proposed bill was geared towards achieving peace in the nation.

He said, “The assumption by some people who think the bill is a ploy to give the current president a third term is laughable, and it is a shame on those holding such views because I don’t see how that is related. If anything, I have seen studies conducted where the issues of violence were catalogued, particularly electoral violence and hate speech featured prominently as a major cause.

“This clearly shows that if we allow hate speech to fester, it means we won’t get good governance, and it would also be difficult to fight corruption.”

 

And in response to the death by hanging sentence for offenders, he said,  “As far as the issue of death by hanging is concerned, which the constitution in section 33 spelt out,  it must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. We are going to provide additional definition after the debate. Hate speech is when you deliberately incite somebody based on making a statement targeting at getting violent reactions from certain religious or ethnic groups. Hate speech must be hateful which means something that is deep, spoken deliberately to make another person angry, or to debase the person or dehumanise him or her.

“I have listened to criticisms and condemnation of the bill; in all what they have said, one beautiful thing that came to my mind is the fact that we are all united against hate. We are all against all forms of discriminations, and that everybody is concerned with the subject of death, nobody wants to see death being unleashed on anybody. I think that is very fundamental. I am happy we are having this conversation as a nation. Over the past ten days, since the bill was read, I have received all kinds of messages, including threats, but I am not bothered about that. In all of this, if I receive one commendation, it gladdens my heart, and I did receive many commendations.”

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