Senate: National Commission for Prohibition of Hate Speeches coming

The Senate, on Tuesday, passed the first reading of the National Commission for the Prohibition of Hate Speeches (Est.) Bill, 2019.
The Bill was sponsored by Senator Aliyu Abdullahi.
It was one of the 12 bills that scaled first reading on the floor of the Upper Chamber on Tuesday.
The media, led by the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), human rights activists and opinion leaders in the country have kicked against the bill, insisting that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government wants to use the new Commission to gag Nigerians.
Also, Senate President, Dr Ahmad Lawan, said that the National Assembly was working towards the passage of the 2020 Appropriation bill on November 28.
To achieve the target date, Lawan, during plenary mandated the Senate Committee on Appropriations, to submit its report on the 2020 Budget proposal on November 26.
He said that the committee’s compliance with the presentation of its report on November 26, would facilitate the passage of the 2020 Budget on November 28, before the National Assembly would proceed on Christmas break.
He said: “On the Budget 2020 we are working on, the ball is now in the court of Senate Committee on Appropriations, the last committee standing.
“All the committees have done their work so well within the defined parameters and we, therefore, expect the Appropriations Committee to produce the report and lay it here by November 26, the next two weeks.
“I believe that the same thing will be done in our sister chamber, the House of Representatives, so that we are able to pass the Appropriation Bill 2020 on the November 28, by the Grace of God.”
Meanwhile, a total of 12 bills scaled first reading on the floor on Tuesday.
The bills are: National Religious Equity Commission (Est.) Bill, 2019, sponsored by Sen. Stella Oduah; Constituency Development Fund (Est.) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Ali Ndume and the National Agency for Technology Incubation (Est.) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Ajayi Boroffice.
Others are National War College Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Aliyu Wamakko; Compulsory Free Universal Education Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Rose Oko, and Private Security and Forensic Investigation Bureau of Nigeria (Est.) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Barinanda Mpigi.
Others include Police Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Betty Apiafi; Federal University of Agriculture and Technology Funtua (Est.) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Bello Mandiya and Federal College of Education (Technical) Kaima, Kwara State (Est.) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Sadiq Umar.
Also, Federal University of Gashua (Est.) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Yahaya Abdullahi; Federal Medical Centre Dekina, by Sen. Jibrin Isah, and National Commission for the Prohibition of Hate Speeches (Est.) Bill, 2019, by Sen. Aliyu Abdullahi.