Buhari Declines Assent to Digital Rights and Freedom Bill, Four Others

President Muhammadu Buhari has declined assent to five bills passed by the National Assembly.

The affected bills are the Nigeria Film Commission Bill 2018, the Climate change Bill, 2018, the Immigration (amendment) Bill, 2018, the Chartered Institute of Pension Practitioners of Nigeria Bill, 2018 and the Digital Rights and Freedom Bill, 2018.

President Buhari said he relied on Section 58(4) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) to convey to the Senate his decision on 5th March, 2019, to decline Presidential assent to the Nigeria Film Commission Bill, 2018 passed by the National Assembly.

Presidential memo read by the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, quoted President Buhari to have declined assent because a, Section 1(3) (d)&(e) of the Bill conflicts Section 2(a)(i),(ii) and (c) of the National Film and Video Censors Board Act which confers functions in relation to film exhibition on the National Film and Video Censors Board.

The memo also said that Section 7(1) (k) of the Bill which states the 1 percent of the proceeds for television licence from the National Broadcasting Commission shall be paid into a fund to be controlled by the National Film Commission is in conflict with Section 16(1) of the National Broadcasting Commission Act which stipulates the purpose for which expenditure generated by the NBC may be used.

It said that Section 7(2) (d) of the Bill, which proposes to divert 5 percent of VAT on all film-related activity to the National Film Development Fund violates Section 40 of the Value Added Tax Act and the sharing formula prescribed therein, because it diverts funds normally distributed to the states of the Federation to a single federal institution.

Meanwhile, the pan-African digital rights advocacy organization, Paradigm Initiative, has expressed disappointment over the decision of President Muhammadu Buhari to decline assent to the Digital Rights and Freedom Bill, saying “the refusal of the President to sign the Bill is a huge setback for human rights online in Nigeria.”

Reasons for the refusal of assent to the other four bills were also given.