Senate: We are not planning to pass social media bill

Ajibola Basiru, spokesman of the senate, says reports it is untrue that lawmakers in the upper legislative chamber are planning to pass a bill  to regulate social media.

Basiru spoke in reaction to reports that the lawmakers are planning to pass the bill as soon as they resume from their annual recess in September.

The bill entitled, “Protection from Internet Falsehood and Manipulations” is sponsored by Mohammed Sani Musa, senator representing Niger east.

Musa had said Nigeria needs the legislation because it would protect its “fragile unity.”

At a public hearing at the senate, many of the stakeholders kicked against the bill.

In a statement on Saturday, Basiru said no recommendation for passage of the bill has been made by the senate committee on judiciary.

The Osun senator asked Nigerians to be wary of reports that were “concocted to tarnish the image of the senate”.

“This report is yet another example of irresponsibility taken too far as there has not been any recommendation for passage of the bill by the senate,” the legislator said.

“The senate wishes that Nigerians will be circumspect, shunning gullibility which makes them to lap up those invidious write ups and begin to comment on non-existent issues.

“If some people have chosen the path of perfidy wanting to bring the nation and its sacred institutions down, Nigerians must be wary and unwilling to be led by those to believing the false fabrication.

“It is common knowledge that the senate conducts its sittings in the open and matters for consideration are well laid out and therefore, would not require anyone’s investigation to ‘dig’ out what the Senate would do.

“We will not allow unscrupulous writers to denigrate the senate and ridicule the great work that is ongoing.”