Former military Head of State, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, has reacted to the Hate Speech Bill sponsored by Senator Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi.
Speaking in his Minna Uphill residence while hosting the National President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Chief Christopher Isiguzo, Babangida said there was no basis for the bill because no one can deny Nigerians their fundamental rights.
He said: “I am surprised that this bill has resurfaced. There is no basis for this now. We are developing; we should be allowed to develop. If we make mistakes people can be cautioned. If somebody goes off you have the right to call him to say, ‘no, we don’t want this.’
“Unless people can express themselves, those in government or authority will not know what is happening in the country.”
Describing the bill as an “eye service” by the sponsor, Babangida said the death penalty prescribed in the bill was “crude and wicked.”
He said: “If somebody makes hate speech, put him in the gallows and not shoot him. It is crude and out of tune with the 21st-century reality. It could have happened, maybe some 300 years ago, but not now.
The former Head of State promised to join the NUJ and other stakeholders in protesting against the passage of the bill.
“I am with you on this. I will also talk to those of us who could be in a position to bring sanity to bear on some of these things. if we had their type of media, I think they should be jailing you all by now. But today, the country is better for it,” he said.
The hate speech if pass into law will take away people’s freedom of speech,which is the only democratic right we enjoy for now, if i may ask why did APC govt want to do this? will this be in connection with the third term agenda, it look like APC and its govt under president M.Buhari want to used the bill to silence the people of Nigeria first so that people will have not right to speak against APC third term agenda which they want to carry out in the name of 6 year one term, please fellow Nigerians let’s come out together with one voice and destroy this monster call HATE SPEECH BILL for the benefits of all Nigerians ,our children and that of our generations to come, if we as people and a Nation allow this bill,its going to have the ever worst negative effects on us all and the bill is going to enslaved all Nigerians forever, The Nigerian law makers should make laws that will build and prosper Nigeria, not the laws that will destroy Nigeria and set Nigeria and her more than 10,000 years democratic,economics,social, political and all rounds backwardness as this law makers so called HATE SPEECH BILL will do us all.
All those in power or in govt today both the man who sponsored this so call hate speech bill today benefited from the so called hate speech yesterday during his campaign to become a lawmaker, there’s no justification for this hate speech bill, the worst bill ever in the history of Nigerian lawmaker’s, if Nigerian people freedom of expression is taken away how can the people partispate in the govt? if you the so called lawmakers did know, please the lawmakers should understand today that, the people take part in govt indirectly through their freedom speech and expression, freedom of speech and expression is what make democracy the govt of the people, by people and for the people as we all know the freedom of speech and expression is the beauty of democracy, please you the lawmakers should not take the beauty of democracy away from we the people of Nigeria, as you’re in govt today, tomorrow you Will be out of govt, you never can who will become the president in future by this so called hate speech bill you’re not only cageing the people but also you the lawmakers by this your so called hate speech bill will totally destroy the SENATE and the HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE because you’re indirectly given the OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT THE LEGAL POWER TO POKET THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REP and there by make the upper chamber and lower chamber USELESS AND GOOD FOR NOTHING RUBBER STAMPS FOREVER.