Jonathan reminds Nigerians of ‘total freedom enjoyed’ during his tenure

Barely 24 hours after the military said it is now
monitoring social media for hate speeches, ex-
President Goodluck Jonathan has reminded Nigerians
of the “total freedom enjoyed” during his
administration.

Jonathan took to his Facebook page on Thursday to
share a quote he made during his tenure in which he
said he was the “most abused and insulted president”.

“I am the most abused and insulted president in the
world, but when I leave office you will all remember me
for the total freedom you enjoyed under my
government,” the quote read.

Jonathan, during his tenure as president, signed the
freedom of information act into law.

The military’s decision to watch out for comments that
could be “anti-government, anti-military or anti-
security” followed President Muhammadu Buhari’s
claim that some comments on social media “have
crossed our national red lines “.

“Nigerians are robust and lively in discussing their
affairs, but I was distressed to notice that some of the
comments, especially in the social media have crossed
our national red lines by daring to question our
collective existence as a nation. This is a step too far,”
Buhari had said during his nationwide broadcast.

In the same vein, Acting President Yemi Osinbajo
recently announced that hate speech will now be
treated as an act of terrorism .

“The federal government has today drawn the line on
hate speech. Hate speech is a specie of terrorism,”
Osinbajo had said.

“The Terrorism Prevention Act 2011 as amended
defines terrorism as an act which deliberately done
with malice which may seriously harm a country or is
intended or can be reasonably be regarded as having
been done to seriously intimidate a population. Silence
in such situations can only be seen as an
endorsement.”

TheCable