The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), on Tuesday,
described the bill sponsored by Senator Ibn Na’Allah of the All Progressives Congress (APC), representing Kebbi South Senatorial District, titled, ‘Act to Prohibit Frivolous Petitions and Other Related Matters Bill’, which seek not only to gag freedom of the citizen to express themselves but to commit violators to a minimum of two years jail term as completely anti-democracy.
The congress said in a statement that the proposed bill violated Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, maintaining that the bill was coming at a time the nation expect the legislators and indeed, all Nigerians to recommit themselves to actions and legislations that can contribute to deepening democracy, as well as fight against corruption in the country.
The bill, which proposed an option of N4 million as fine for those claimed to have made false newspaper, Radio or television statements and N2 million for those claimed to have made false phone text messages or statements on Facebook, twitter, Instagram, or WhatsApp, the congress said is a sad reminder of the military era when journalists were mindlessly hurled into jail for writing what the military junta considered spiteful.
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