Osinbajo tweets against hate speech, condemns silence of leaders
Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo has described hate speech as specie of terrorism and thereby called on well-meaning Nigerians no keep silent but speak out to condemn it in its entirety.
Osinbajo, in a tweet on Thursday on his tweeter handle, @ProfOsinbajo, said that FG has today drawn the line on hate speech.
According to him, “Hate speech is a species of terrorism. The Terrorism Prevention Act 2011 as amended defines terrorism as an act which deliberately done with malice which may seriously harm a country or is intended or can be reasonably be regarded as having been done to seriously intimidate a population
“Silence in such situations can only be seen as an endorsement. Hate speech & the promotion of the same through history from Nazi Germany & the extermination of Jews to the Rwandan genocide succeeded in achieving their barbarous ends by the silence of influential voices.
“The silence of leaders at this time – in our country- will be a grave disservice to our country, its peace & its future.
The Federal Government has vowed to deal decisively with any person or group involved in hate speech or inciting the public to cause break down of law and order.
The Minister of Interior, Mr. Abdulrahman Dambazau, gave the warning at a media briefing on Friday in Abuja.
Dambazau said the warning became necessary following series of threats and counter-threats directed at ethnic groups and the need to maintain law and order.
He said as the minister responsible for public safety and security, proactive measures had been put in place to ensure safety of lives and property of Nigerians irrespective of their ethnic groups and where they resided.
“I wish to reassure the public of government’s commitment to protect lives and property, as well as to ensure the sanctity and integrity of the national space.
“All those found inciting public disobedience or preaching violence and hatred under any guise whatsoever will be made to face the full wrath of the law,” he said.
He said all the measures being taken were meant to consolidate on the efforts of the acting President, Yemi Osinbajo who had been addressing the concerns of different segments of the society.
The minister said that Federal Government was already putting together an Executive bill to the National Assembly to clearly state what hate speech is and the stiff punishment for culprits.
