The Executive Board of the Online Publishers Association of
Nigeria (OPAN) Friday, met with the President of the Senate to discuss the
Frivolous Petition Bill, which has been widely reported and labeled as the
“Social Media Bill.”
The president of the organization, Mr. Olufemi Awoyemi, who
was accompanied by a member of the Executive Committee of the association, Mr.
Daniel Elombah; in his presentation to the President of the Senate, Dr.
Abubakar Bukola Saraki, stated why his organization, along with a majority of
Nigerians, disagree with first with Section 4 of the Bill – a provision that
aims to criminalize false statements and the use of unsupported petitions on
social media; and the general approach to the subject of online engagement in
Nigeria..
Dr. Saraki in his remarks thanked Mr. Awoyemi for accepting
his invitation on such short notice, and assured him that he remains an ardent
user of social media platforms and reader of online publications, and he will
in no way support any form of censorship or attempt to slow the progress made
so far.
The Senate President used the opportunity of the meeting to
explain the method of presenting, processing and eventual passage of bills to
Mr. Awoyemi, especially a private member bill like the frivolous petitions
bill.
The Senate President further assured the Online Publishers
Association of Nigeria (OPAN) that the 8th Senate remains committed to the
principles of fair, responsible and open engagement which the online affords
citizens with the elected representatives, as records will show that this Senate
has made good use of various online and social media platforms to deliver on
this mandate and wish to do more. The Senate President also cited instances
before, during and after the elections when social media played a major role in
ensuring accountability in government; one the senate will ensure is sustained.
The Senate President assured the online publishers that the
Senate has no intention to pass any legislation to control or gag the press,
but encouraged the organization to do its part to ensure that international
best practices are quickly established to enable the country increase its
learning phase from the wholesome adoption of data communication and sift the
real online publishers and journalists that follow the ethos and ethics of
sound journalism practices from those that simply set up to use their platforms
to extort and blackmail.
Awoyemi, in his response assured the Senate President that
the organization is made up of credible publishers of online platforms and
newspapers with online presence and it is modeling itself along best practice
with relationships with key platform providers and value creators in the online
ecosystem. He also mentioned that efforts were underway to strengthen the
industry, through a better appreciation of how self-regulation aids phases
during a significant disruption in culture, social interaction and change in
practices as Nigeria embarked on since we deregularised the telecommunications
industry.
In OPAN’s assessment, Mr. Awoyemi noted; the legislature
remains critical to how Nigeria quickly harnesses the potentials of online
technology and use of social media as a critical component of citizen
engagement and governance practice improvements.
To achieve this, OPA Nigeria sees a link between
constitutionally provided for “freedom of expression” and responsible conduct
and engagement by users and publishers. To aid the process, the association
agreed to share its research into aspects of our legal system that keeps online
publishing and social media outside the law; present areas requiring review and
amendments of current laws that ensure responsible conduct across digital
platforms which in some cases were as simple as recognizing the variants in
existing laws around newspaper, radio, TV and digital publishing and broadcast.
Specifically, OPAN believes that the current conversation
must not only be sustained but moved forward in a collaborative manner that
builds consensus between key stakeholders, judiciary and legislature to enable
the country respond positively to the discomforting aspects at this time, but
more importantly, anticipate and create a desired future for ICT.
0 comments:
Post a Comment