The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as quoted below guarantees
the freedom of speech and expression. This freedom is to the extent that it
does not violate the rights of others, or used as an incitement to deny or
obstruct a society of its legitimate and peaceful co-existence.
Section “39. 1. Every person shall be
entitled to freedom of expression, including freedom to hold opinions and to
receive and impart ideas and information without interference.• Freedom of expression• Freedom of press
2. Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1) of this
section, every person shall be entitled to own, establish and operate any
medium for the dissemination of
information, ideas and opinions: Provided
that no person, other than the Government of the Federation or of a State or
any other person or body authorised by the President on the fulfillment of
conditions laid down by an Act of the National Assembly, shall own, establish or
operate a television or wireless broadcasting station for, any purpose whatsoever.”
(Culled from the constitution of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria).
Wars, civil,
international, and world wars do not start just at the launch of any missiles
or gunshots. They all start from speeches – hate speeches; unguided and inflammatory
speeches occasioned by lack of restraint and the inconsideration of the future
consequence of such speeches. Nations had gone to rubbles by the mismanagement
of emotions and speeches from presumably mature minds. Most families, as
micro-societies have been ruined by unguided and irrational talks by so-called
respectable and responsible adults. Nigeria is dancing graciously into its
precipice by relishing hate speeches without considering that it is a palpable
fire that can consume millions of both the guilty and the innocent or
exterminate the entire country.
Hate speeches
molded in provocative images have regrettably become part of the electoral
process of Nigerian politics. As a build-up to the 2015 general elections, hate
speeches were the order of the day. President Goodluck Jonathan who was the
presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party was caricatured in
several newspapers to satirically assault him. There was an image of a goat
wearing a tie but having the head of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, with the Niger-Delta
styled hat. This was to symbolically mean that our then president (the PRESIDENT
of Nigeria) was a goat in a political contest. Another picture showed the caricature
of the same Dr. Goodluck Jonathan in a coffin. To activate the bestiality of these
depraved minds, his campaign convoy was physically attacked in one of the
Northern states as at then. This is height of absurdity of a people clamouring
for development and sustenance of the hard-earned democracy…dragging the
president in the mud because of power-tussle.
The then presidential candidate of the All
Progressives Congress, Muhammadu Buhari was not spared either. He was verbally assaulted
even by prominent politicians such as the present governor of Ekiti State, Mr.
Ayodele Peter Fayose. He had once described Buhari as a man carrying a numb
brain. He insinuated in the campaigns joyously published by TELL Magazine as a who
was very close to his grave and that Nigerians were as good as voting for a dead
man contesting an election. Is this not political megalomania?
The basics
of political campaigns highlighting manifestos and winning the minds of the electorates
were thrown to the dustbin. Attacking individuals became a norm, and an
acceptable one for that matter! The Electoral Body, that is, the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC) was as toothless as not even attempting to
curtail such excesses and improper behaviours of these political gladiators.
Graduating from
such display of mental corrosion in the electoral space, Nigerians in highly
disdainful tribal jingoism began issuing quit notices to one another on tribal
lines. Each tribe living in another’s, was given an ultimatum to relocate to
their place of origin. These notices were spiced up with uncivilized and highly
provocative speeches calling one another unprintable names with incendious statements.
Ironically, once again, these are people who want development. Even within the
feuding tribes, there are schisms and undiluted factionalism occasioned by lack
of principles and collective drive for a common front. To worsen the whole of
this, there is a drum of war sounding deafeningly and each tribe appear to push
out its shallow chest that cannot even accommodate a bullet of self-inflicting political
misadventure.
It must be
made abundantly clear to all of us that hate speeches is the worst thing that
can ever happen to mankind. There are no explicit or implied benefits of it in
all its ramifications. All it conveys is evil and destruction in its entirety. The
Nigerian civil war of 1967-1970 was precipitated by hate speeches, regardless
of its remote causes. Holed up in the well of collective blindness, after the
horrible loss of millions of lives and property, the feuding parties eventually
resorted to settle their scores on the table of deliberations and
reconciliations. This was not after the irredeemable carnage. Nigerians should
be matured to learn from history. It will be highly catastrophic if we allow
hate speeches to fester especially in the present volatile state of the Nigerian
nation. It is not enough therefore for the federal government to pass a law
treating hate speeches as terrorist acts, or monitoring the social media and
regiment public expressions, they must carry out enough campaigns to educate
the people on the irrevocable dangers of hate speeches at any levels of human relationship.
The government must be sincere in all dealings. I draw my
suggestion and counsel judging from the hypocrisy displayed by the Lagos State
government who at a time bent the state environmental laws to suit their political
purpose. Before the 2011 elections, Lagos State government passed an
environmental law making it an offence to post bills indiscriminately on public
places. During 2011 political campaigns, posters of the ruling APC and of other
political parties littered all the nooks and crannies of the entire state. After
the elections, the same government went about removing every poster across the
state. What double-faced policy formulation and implementation is this? The federal
government must abhor this kind of hypocrisy and policy somersault by engaging WHOEVER
makes hate speeches before, during and after electoral campaigns; and under any
guise of legitimate or otherwise demands, by individuals or groups, by
consistently treating all such as terrorists.
If Nigeria
must stay in the path of peace and progress, hate speeches must be
discountenanced at all levels of relationship. This law should be made to also
outlive the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. It should be taken as
statement of policy by the National Orientation Agency (NOA) and entrenched in
the possible review of the constitution of the Election Management Bodies
(EMB).
Finally, I warn that hate speeches is a potent
acid that can completely ruin a society in particular and a country at large. Nigeria,
will undoubtedly, not be spared!
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