Journalists in Nigeria may soon be liable to spend up to 3 years in prison for violating a new law being put forward by the House of Representatives.
The proposed law which is an an amendment of the National Broadcasting Commission Bill and the Nigerian Press Council Act was sponsored by Odebunmi Olusegun, APC, Oyo State and Chairman, House Committee on Information, National Orientation, Ethics and Values.
According to the submitted document, the bill seeks to remove bottlenecks affecting its performance and make the press council operate in tune with the current realities in regulating media.

However, the new bill has been met with resistance. The Nigerian Press Organisation (NPO), umbrella organisation for the Newspapers Proprietors Association of Nigeria (NPAN), the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) and the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) has rejected the bill.
Similarly, the International Press Centre (IPC) has kicked against it saying the content of the bill is an attempt by the government to criminalize journalism in the country.
The Senate however feels differently. The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Ajibola Basiru, expressed that the current efforts to amend the NBC Act and other relevant laws should not be misinterpreted as an attempt to stifle freedom of speech and free press. He added that it is to improve and sanitise the media industry and not to stifle the civic space.
Digging down to the roots of the bill, analysis shows that the concerns of the NPO and its sister organisations are not unfounded. Certain highlights of the bill reflect a black time for the press in Nigeria. Below are some of them.

The intention on paper was to sanitise it but the intent is to criminalise constructive criticisms that expose the errors of the sitting power.

Don't be surprised when you see government of the day clapping down on media houses, individuals and social media platforms that engage in constructive criticisms. Such construction may be too credible for the government to dispute, hence, the use of 'risk to national security' may come in.

Appointees and apologists to sitting presidents/governors in Nigeria see those presidents as infallible gods that cannot make mistake. So, any view that's contrary to the errorneous policies is seen as threat to national security.

I pray we all be alive when Lai Mohammed who is the the apostle of this bill become opposition and the ruling power starts hammering him for any comment he makes. Time will tell.

Imagine a despot like El-Rufai becomes president with such a law in place........ Complete the statement