Hon. Olusegun Odebunmi
Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee onInformation National Orientation Ethics and Values, Olusegun Odebunmi, has disclosed that the bills for the amendment to the laws establishing the NBC and the NPC, which he sponsored have been suspended.
The two bill have generated so much protests, campaign against, especially from media stakeholders since the seniour lawmaker muted it and the Committee he heads called for a public hearing in June
Media stakeholders have described the steps taken by the lower legislative chamber to amend the Nigerian Press Council (NPC) and the Nigeria Broadcasting Commission (NBC) Acts as “draconian” and an attempt to stifle free speech in the country.
The Committee members, including the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila have defended their action, explaining further that the media needs some form of regulation. So too has Senate Spokesperson, Senator Ajibola Basiru, who has argued at different fora that the media should be regulated, urging media stakeholders to seize the chance provided for the bill to pass through first and second reading before a harmonization between both chambers of the National Assembly, to intensify lobbying.
Speaking on Sunrise Daily, a Channels Television programme, on Tuesday, monitored by THISAGE, the arrow head in the champion of the bills, Odebunmi said he initiated the suspension of the bills to allow for wider consultation with stakeholders in the industry.
According to him; “Personally, I’m suspending the process for more consultation,” he said.
“What I’m saying is that the NUJ cannot gag the activities of the national assembly by saying ‘No you must drop it’, because obviously that is not the way.
“We have suspended the process for more consultation to happen on it. They demanded for a lot of time and I said ‘no problem, we have given you; even if you spend three, four to five weeks’. So far, more consultations from critical stakeholders, and many people have been submitting their memoranda to the national assembly even within the industry.”
The federal lawmaker also said he has since he recognised the lapses in the practice of journalism in Nigeria and that the amendments are aimed at fixing those problems, stating that his intention is not to gag the press but to regulate those activities he consider obsolete in the profession.
“My intention is not to gag the press and unless all the practitioners can say all is well with the industry, to the best of my knowledge I know all is not well. And I know the National Assembly has the power to look into the existing act.
“All is not well with the NPC agency. It is an agency of government and you’re expecting something to be given back to the society but until now nothing has been coming from the agency.”
