The Youth Wing of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the South East zone has vowed to resist the proposed Hate Speech Bill.
The youths alleged that the bill was a ploy by the All Progressives Congress(APC)- led Federal government to suppress the opposition parties and Nigerians from speaking against the ills of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
The leader of the Youths in the zone, Comrade Chidiebere Egwu, alleged that Buhari and other APC leaders initiated and excerbated Hate Speech which they used to oust former President Goodluck Jonathan out of office.
Speaking in Abakaliki, the youth leader noted that the reintroduction of the bill was unfortunate and unnecessary as it will negative the Constitutional rights of Citizens.
The bill, sponsored by the Deputy Chief Whip, Aliyu Abdullahi, currently on the floor of the Senate, prescribes death penalty for anyone found guilty of spreading a falsehood that led to the death of another person.
Egwu noted that hate speech was the propaganda machinery of the APC Government to pit Nigerians against the administration of the Jonathan’s Presidency and having reneged on their promises, they want to gag divergent opinions against the APC Government.
“The reintroduction of the hate speech bill was anti-democratic, unconstitutional and futile exercise. If hate speech was enacted by the Jonathan’s Presidency, Buhari and other APC leaders would have been victims of death penalty. The present APC administration benefited from hate speech.
“In 2012 and 2014, APC Leaders warned that if former President Jonathan won, they will form a parallel government, was that not a treason statement? When President Muhammadu Buhari reportedly said that baboons and monkeys will soak in blood if 2015 election was rigged, was that not a hate speech.
“The APC leaders abused Jonathan and reduced him to shreds to get to power, and now they don’t want Nigerians to express their opinions. We can’t allow that to happen.
“The South East Youths will continue to speak out for the betterment of our country. The major victims of the proposed bill were the youths. They don’t want us to speak about the insecurity; they don’t want us to expose their massive corruption; they don’t want us to speak about the bad roads, failing healthcare, poor education standard. The APC Government doesn’t Nigerians to speak against the surge unemployment of our youths”.
Egwu further urged the National Assembly to consider the numerous negative implications of the bill and discard it in the interest of national unity, peace and sustenance of the Democratic principles.
