By Ezra Ukanwa, Abuja

THE Director, Abuja School of Social and Political Thought, Nigeria, ASSPT, Dr. Sam Amadi, has cautioned the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) against stifling freedom of speech and expression in Nigeria.

Amadi spoke during a Media Parley themed: “Democracy and Media Censorship” on Monday, in Abuja,

He said: “There’s no constitutional or legal ground that says communication or opinion with people has to be civil, otherwise, it’s criminal. So, you have to draw two lines; there is a moral obligation for all persons in public discourse to be civil, moral obligation to be tolerant, but as no criminal or legal offense, if somebody uses the language you consider disrespectful.

“Part of democracy and the right to free press and expression is the recognition that sometimes speech that is agreeable, interpret, or simple and sometimes scandalous but that’s not a reason to antagonize the media or the platform on which those speeches were made and that is important for us as a school. The freedom of the press is not just nuisances that you can put out. These are the fundamentals of a democratic society.

“The Office of the President or any other public office in Nigeria is built around public trusts, legitimacy, and the right of the power of those offices to exercise power for public good. They are not father and mother so they are not able to carry too much respect otherwise for those offices. Otherwise, we’re going to freeze our speech. So, our concern as a school is that we shouldn’t freeze that speech.”

On his part, a scholar and research fellow, Paul Obi, described NBC’s recent letter as “a despicable, undemocratic and autocratic slide of Nigeria’s democracy.”

He said: “The antics and antecedents of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) in recent times have been worrisome, shocking and if not, injurious to Nigeria’s democracy.

“In its recent activities not in support of democratic governance, the NBC has acted as if it is ferociously scared of certain facts and truth. Conversely, as the 2021 Winner of the Nobel Laureate for Peace, Maria Ressa posited, “Without facts, you can’t have truth. Without truth, you can’t have trust. Without all three, we have no shared reality, and democracy as we know it – and all meaningful human endeavors – are dead.”

“While the Abuja School is not holding brief for any individual, organizations, institutions or have an agenda, we find the reasons the NBC relied upon as befuddling, undemocratic, autocratic and as well unconstitutional.”

He, however, urged all media organizations and Nigerians to resist any attempt by the NBC to gag and censor the media in whatever form, including seeking legal redress from the law courts.