President Muhammadu Buhari has threatened to take serious action against Nigerians spreading hate speech on social media.
Buhari made this known while delivering his speech on the occasion of Nigeria’s 59th Independence celebration Tuesday morning.
He noted that: “Our attention is increasingly being focused on cyber-crimes and the abuse of technology through hate speech and other divisive material being propagated on social media.
“Whilst we uphold the Constitutional rights of our people to freedom of expression and association, where the purported exercise of these rights infringes on the rights of other citizens or threatens to undermine our National Security, we will take firm and decisive action.”
He therefore, called for all to exercise restraint, tolerance and mutual respect in airing their grievances and frustrations.
“Whilst the ongoing national discourse on various political and religious issues is healthy and welcome, we must not forget the lessons of our past – lessons that are most relevant on a day such as this.
“The path of hatred and distrust only leads to hostility and destruction. I believe that the vast majority of Nigerians would rather tread the path of peace and prosperity, as we continue to uphold and cherish our unity,” the President stressed.
