Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed has said that the Executive arm of government did not sponsor any bill to gag the operations of the press in the country.
The Minister made the clarification on Friday in Lagos, South West Nigeria when he spoke in respect of the outcome of the public hearing that took place inview of the amendment of some bills for an act initiated by the House of Representatives Committee on Information, National Orientation, Ethics and Values.
The contentious bills are that of the Nigerian Press Council as well as the National Broadcasting Commission.
The Minister stated that those berating him on these bills have been doing so on a totally ill-informed and false premise.
“Any suggestion that the federal government has sponsored bills to stifle the press is a complete false good.This is a classic case of misinformation.”
He further maintained his position that the federal government did not sponsor any bill to gag the press. According to him, the bills in question, especially those concerning the Nigerian Press Council and the National Broadcasting Commission, are private member bills.
In furtherance of his clarification, he affirmed that the bills were sponsored by a member of the National Assembly, and not by the Federal Government as widely and mischievously insinuated.
“It baffles me that those who rushed to the media to slam the government didn’t even try to verify the facts of the matter.”
Even though the Minister has clarified the standings, he is of the opinion that the National Assembly member who sponsored these bills has done nothing wrong, in the sense that he is only doing what he was elected to do; make laws.
But I insist that the bills were not sponsored by the Federal government.”
Alhaji Lai Mohammed said he was invited in his capacity as a stakeholder and as the Minister of Information and Culture, to make contributions, just like many other stakeholders that were present at the public hearing last week.
” It was an opportunity for stakeholders to make their input into the bills. I attended and made my contributions.
It is interesting that those who are now falsely accusing the federal government and misinforming the public on these bills had a chance to make their contributions during the public hearing, but did not show up. Instead, they chose to play to the gallery.
The Nigerian Press Organization, which represented the Nigerian Union of Journalists, the Nigerian Guild of Editors and the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria, appeared there merely for appearance sake.
Instead of strongly stating their reservations on the bill that seeks to amend the Nigerian Press Council, they were more interested in stopping the hearing, hinging their argument on the existing case at the Supreme Court on the Press Council.”
The Minister said It is a shame and regrettable that some lovers of democracy still show hatred for the fine details of democracy and its processes.
These critics will rather play to the gallery than do the needful. Why didn’t these critics show up at the much-publicized public hearing on these bills?,he queried.
“Why have they instead opted to go hysterical in the media and to point accusing fingers at the federal government as the sponsor of the bills, when indeed that is not true?
My honest advice to the Nigerian Union of Journalists, Nigerian Guild of Editors and the Newspaper Proprietors’ Association of Nigeria is for them to engage with the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Information, National Orientation, Ethics and Values to convey their reservations on the bills, instead of engaging in cheap blackmail and misinformation. You cannot like democracy and abhor its processes.”
Ime N
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