Senate holds public hearing on social media bill tomorrow

By SUNDAY ABORISADE, Abuja

The Senate will tomorrow (Monday) conduct  the much expected public hearing on the anti-social media bill sponsored by Senator Musa Sani from Niger State.

The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters, on Tuesday, November 20 last year for further legislative input.

Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, told the panel chaired by Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, to conduct the public hearing and submit its report within four weeks.

The four-week deadline ended since December 20, 2019.

Opeyemi, however, told our correspondent in an interview last month that his committee’s preparations towards the public hearing on the sexual harassment bill, delayed further works on the social media bill.

He, however, assured anxious Nigerians willing to make contributions towards the controversial social media bill that the opportunity would come as soon as the public hearing on the sexual harassment bill was over.

A copy of the letters of invitations sent out to stakeholders, sighted by our correspondent on Sunday indicated that the public hearing will hold at one of the Senate halls by 10am.

The President of the Senate,  Ahmad Lawan, according to the invitation,  will declare the event open while critical stakeholders including the media have been invited to express their views.

Opeyemi told our correspondent that the views and opinions that would be expressed at the occasion by the stakeholders would form the basis for his committee’s report.

Meanwhile, the Senate will also on Tuesday, debate  a critical bill which specifically seeks to amend the Companies and Allied Matters Act

The proposed legislation, sponsored by the Senate Leader, Senator Yahaya Abdullahi, proposes to amend the Companies and Allied Matters Act (Chapter C20) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004.

The law, which has not been significantly amended in the last 28 years, was enacted in Nigeria as a decree of the military government in 1990.

The Senate Leader said the bill would strengthen the country’s economy by giving a boost to the business sector in Nigeria.

He also said the business landscape in Nigeria would be reorganised and liberated with the bill’s approval. (The Punch)