Politicians Manipulating Cybercrimes Act Against Journalists – Lawyer

A legal practitioner and managing partner of the Law Corridor, Barr Pelumi Olajengbesi has accused the political class of deliberately manipulating the provisions of the Cybercrimes Act 2015  to police journalists and suppress the freedom of expression and thoughts, while abandoning its primary objectives.

Olajengbesi who spoke in Abuja at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Correspondents’ Chapel end-of-year symposium on the theme, “Understanding the Cybercrime Act 2015, The Media Ethics Perspective”, called for the amendment of the Act.

While tasking journalists to remain committed to the ethical standard of the profession, he stressed that free media was crucial to the tenets of democracy.

He said, “Authorities in Government have attempted to silence opposition views in the online media through arbitrary interpretation and abuse of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition and Prevention) Act, 2015, particularly section 24 of the Act which addresses offensive and annoying statements on the internet otherwise known as cyberstalking, and several journalists, bloggers and individuals have been arrested in this regard.

“Stories, articles and expressions published online have been deemed offensive, insulting or annoying with actionable consequences under the said section even when the stories are factual. While some stories published through traditional media outlets (print and electronic) that were never sanctioned by the government have been attacked by the same government upon being rebroadcast or republished through online platforms.”

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Also deputy director, journalism programme, at the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Busola Ajibola,  disclosed that 52 verified attacks have been meted out on journalists across the country this year.

Earlier in his opening remarks, chairman of the Correspondents’ Chapel, Comrade Jide Oyekunle, said the union would do everything within its power to ensure that journalists adhere to the rules of reporting.