The Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) has asked the
senate to discard the social media bill and find an alternative means to curb
fake news.
In a statement on Tuesday, Idayat Hassan, CDD director, said
the bill is a provocative legislation aimed at stifling the freedom of
expression.
In November, a week after the senate introduced a bill to
regulate social media, another bill seeking to establish a commission for the
prohibition hate speech in the country was introduced.
The social media bill, which passed second reading at the
senate, has attracted widespread criticism.
Civil society groups have asked for the withdrawal of the
proposed legislation.
“This provocative legislation, which has passed a second
reading in the Senate, is an attempt to use the legislative process to muzzle
freedom of expression. The bill purports to tackle the increasing problem of
false information in Nigeria. This would pose a serious threat to Nigerians
democracy and freedom of speech,” Hassan said.
“CDD acknowledges the groundswell of public opposition to
the bill, which stems from the intolerant political climate in which civil
liberties have been repeatedly trampled upon by the government.
“CDD is deeply concerned that the legislation places an
inordinate amount of power in the hands of the government and security
agencies. The proposed bill raises far more questions than it provides answers.
“As a reputable policy think tank whose main objective is
the production of independent analysis of government policies, CDD sees this
proposed bill as being in line with the authoritarian proclivities of the
current political elite who are more concerned with policing what their citizens
say, do or think, than they are with establishing high standards of democratic
and accountable governance.
“We acknowledge the problem fake news and disinformation
portends for democracy but believe that restrictive regulation is not the
solution.
“CDD urges the Senate to disregard the entire bill and look
for alternative approaches to the problems of hate speech and the spread of
false information on social media. Focusing on improving digital and civic
literacy at all levels of society, will give citizens the skills and knowledge
to decide for themselves what is true and what is false.”
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