Hate Speech Bill Is Dangerous – Kadaria Ahmed

A Nigerian journalist and editor has blasted the proposed hate speech bill.

Popular broadcaster, Kadaria Ahmed, spoke on behalf of The Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, the Nigerian Guild of Editors, the Nigerian Union of Journalists, the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers and the Online Publishers Association at “The Future Awards”, recently, at an event held on Sunday in Lagos.

According to Kadaria Ahmed, the bill is a clear danger to journalists and the rights of citizens to freedom of expression.

She added that it is surely not in line with the Nigerian Constitution.

Her words, “We ask the National Assembly not to pass a bill which is contrary to our constitution, the instrument that confers legitimacy on them. We all recognise the dangers of fake news and hate speech but existing laws like the cyber-crimes act of 2015 and those on libel and defamation is more than adequate to deal with these crimes when they arise.

“One of the critical pillars of a functioning democracy is a free press and we know the proposed social media bill will become another tool in the hands of security agencies for the muzzling of criticism not just by citizens but also by journalists”.

“To conclude, we want to be clear, all of us working in this sector oppose this bill and give notice that we will fight it using every legitimate tool at our disposal including protests and the courts.”

Mrs Ahmed is also the creator and anchor of the show, The Core, on Channels TV.

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