Senate President, Bukola Saraki says the Upper Chamber is ready to give the Hate Speech Bill accelerated consideration when it is presented by the Executive.
This according to him is due to the rising tensions in the polity.
Dr Saraki made this known in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Yusuph Olaniyonu.
He stated that the passage of Bills to mitigate hate speeches and jungle justice will comprise a major part of the Senate’s social impact agenda when it resumes in September.
“At this point in time, when people are heating up the political and social space with their utterances, the Hate Speech Bill will help to mitigate against verbal attacks or expressions against individuals or groups on the basis of ethnicity, religion, and even gender.”
He stressed further that this would send a clear message with accompanying punitive measures to people who are fond of distasteful comments that hurt, offend and provoke retaliation.
Senator Saraki also stated that the Anti-Jungle Justice Bill which is sponsored by Senator Dino Melaye will also help to curtail, protect and prohibit Nigerians across the country from meting out extra-judicial justice to perceived offenders without recourse to statutory legal channels.
“There have been many cases of extrajudicial executions across the nation. We all remember the “Aluu Four” incident, and several other notorious cases of phone and food thieves being set ablaze. We cannot have a situation where people feel that they can take the law into their hands,” Saraki said, “Therefore, we must put in place careful stopgaps and penal measures to protect the sanctity of our communities.”
Furthermore, he noted that the Committee on Judiciary and the Rules and Business Committees of the Senate would work to ensure that the Anti-Jungle Justice Bill is quickly passed and sent to the House of Representatives for concurrence. – Channels.
