Concerns over hate speech Bill

The Nigerian Senate has reintroduced a Bill which will impose the death penalty on anybody found guilty of hate speech which has fatal consequences. The Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate Abdullahi Sabi has sponsored the National Commission For the Prohibition of Hate Speeches Bill. A report on the IoL site notes that it proposes a five-year jail term or a heavy fine if anybody is convicted of harassing an individual on ethnic or racial grounds. Critics of the Bill include former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.