Anti-Social Media Bill Passes Second Reading At Senate

A bill seeking ‘Protection from Internet Falsehood and Manipulation’ on social media passed for second reading at the Nigerian Senate on Tuesday.

The anti-Social media bill is being sponsored by the Senator representing Niger East Senatorial District, Sani Musa.

The bill which seeks to regulate social media usage in Nigeria was supported by Senators Ibrahim Gobir, Elisha Abbo, and Abba Moro when it was called for second reading at the Senate on Wednesday.

The Senator representing Enugu East Senatorial District, Chimaroke Nnamani, however, kicked against the bill during the plenary.

On his part, Senator Bala Ibn Na’Allah raised a constitutional point of order to caution the Senate from passing the bill.

The bill passed for second reading after majority of the senators unanimously voted for it when the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, put the bill to a voice vote.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who has been championing the cause for the regulation of Nigeria’s social media space had said the media have more to gain if the country’s social media space is sanitized.

“To the best of my knowledge, the trained, professional journalists cannot afford to engage in fake news, because this will kill public trust in the media,” Mohammed had said when he received the leadership of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Abuja on Monday.

“They also cannot afford to engage in hate speech, because of its implication for national peace and unity.

“As a professional body for journalists, the NUJ has its code of ethics for journalists, and this guides their operation.

“After all, there has to be a country before you can even practice your profession.

“It is therefore, imperative for the NUJ and other professional bodies to guard their turf very jealously and ward off charlatans and fakes,” said the minister.