We’re Working On A Bill To Curb Hate Speech – Ben Bruce

Sen. Ben Murray-Bruce has said the National Assembly will soon work on a bill that will punish people engaging in hate speeches in the country.

The Senator representing Bayelsa East Senatorial District said the National Assembly will soon work on a bill that stipulates great consequences for people engaging in hate speeches in the country.

Speaking at a meeting convened by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Youth and Student Affairs, Alhaji Nasiru Adhama for regional youth leaders in Abuja, Murray-Bruce said Nigerian youths must not create unnecessary tension.

The senator stated that the proposed bill when passed into law would check the activities of those agitating for secession as well as encouraging divisive tendencies among Nigerians.

“There will be great consequences for hate speech. We must not create tension and get into the ethnic game.

“We must not get into hate speech because we are coming up with a bill at the National Assembly that will stipulate great consequences for people engaging in hate speeches.

“I said there will be consequences for hate speech.

“You don’t have the right to get on Television to insult any ethnic group in this country; you don’t have the right to criticise the other group because you don’t love them, you don’t sound like them, you don’t talk like them, you don’t walk like them.

“You have no right to divide this country. We have enough problems the way we are. We will not tolerate any of the nonsense.

“We need a government of national unity. Right now, we must keep Nigeria united; we must stand together, stay healthy and move Nigeria forward,’’ he said.

He attributed the current problems facing Nigeria as a geo-political entity to inability of Nigerians to study the nation’s history, saying the previous Nigerian Ministers of Education should be held responsible for this situation.

According to him, we need to understand why we are a nation called Nigeria and why we have problems in first place.

“One of the biggest problems we have as a nation is that we are not students of history.

“Sometimes you need to agitate so that we can have a conversation, so that we can fix the problem. So, we have to cope with agitating as long as there is no violence.

“But I think as a nation we must understand history. Like I said in the senate we must understand history.

“History teaches us that supporting one ethnic group against the other is counterproductive.

“How did we all get here. We got here because in 1966 the Igbo command wiped out the northern command, that is how it started.

“Then, the northern command retaliated and wiped out the Igbo command than they started killing Igbos in north then they went home.

“Ojukwu felt he should be head of state because he was older and more senior to Gowon. And then he set up the republic of Biafra, he started fighting he lost the war and went on exile,” he said.