Emmanuel Ugwu in Umuahia
The National Assembly has been urged to enact a law that would make corrupt practices to attract death sentence instead of making “hate speech” a capital offence.
The Coalition of South East Youth Leaders(COSEYL) made the call in a statement signed by the duo of Chief Goodluck Egwu Ibem, president general and Hon Ernest Nmong, deputy publicity secretary.
A bill on hate speech is currently before the National Assembly, which among other things prescribes death sentence for convicted offenders.
But the youth leaders disagreed, saying that the hate speech bill was only meant “to protect looters and silence dissenting voices”, adding that corruption offence was more grievous than the so called hate speech.
“If our senators are sincere about serving the people, they should pass a law that stipulates capital punishment – death by hanging – for public office holders found guilty of corruption,” the group said.
COSEYL argued that corruption remained “the major problem and cankerworm that has kept this country from progress and development” hence if corruption was made a capital offence it would facilitate “rapid development, progress and economic advancement in the country”.
The youth leaders supported President Muhammadu Buhari’s call on both the legislative and judicial arms of government “to embrace and support the creation of Special Crimes Court to handle corruption cases.
They suggested that such anti- corruption court should have the power to pass death sentences on those convicted of corruption offences, adding that federal lawmakers should not waste time and tax payers’ money on making laws that is not relevant to national development.
COSEYL “condemned in strongest terms” the hate speech bill sponsored by Senator Sabi Abdullahi, which according to the group was being packaged to prevent Nigerians from speaking out against corrupt public officials and their collaborators.
Instead, the group suggested that both the death sentence and option of heavy fine of N10 million proposed in the hate speech bill should be reserved “for corrupt political office holders or corrupt government contractors who have retarded the country from making progress”.
While acknowledging that stopping hate speech “is very pertinent” because of its destructive effects the youth leaders noted that the approach adopted by the promoters of hate speech bill was fraught with hidden agenda
