Shehu Sani Reacts To N5m Hate Speech Fine

The former lawmaker representing Kaduna central senatorial district, Shehu Sani, has reacted to the increase in the penalty for hate speech by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government.

Recall that the Minster of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, on Tuesday, announced the reviewed penalty for hate speech in Nigeria.

The Minister while speaking at the unveiling ceremony of the reviewed Nigeria Broadcasting Code organized by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) in Lagos said the penalty for hate speech has increased from N500,000 to N5 million.

Sani who took to his Twitter account, described the reviewed penalty as a means for the Buhari government to gain revenue, describing it as the new ‘oil revenue’

His tweet read: ” With N5 million as fine for hate speech, we have discovered an alternative to oil revenue.”

The development has been condemned by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) which has called for the immediate reversal of the new penalty.

SERAP described the increment as Unconstitutional and illegal.