Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, has restated the need for the country to regulate the social media.
Mohammed spoke at the House of Representatives during a public hearing organised by the Hon. Odebunmi Dokun-led committee on Information, National Orientation, Ethics and Values, saying it would be in the best interest of the citizenry to monitor social media contents.
The move according to observers of the media industry will lead to massive job loss as a result of anticipated shut down of several online outfits and at the same time, bring sanity to the industry as it may stem the advent of quacks in the industry who may not be able to meet the stringent conditions for licencing.
The minister who spoke against the backdrop of the controversy trailing the ban on the use of Twitter in the country enjoined the lawmakers to grant full regulatory powers to government over Internet broadcasting and all online media outfits.
He asserted that the country’s laws must not be subservient to international telecommunication union treaties in view of the need to protect peculiar situations in our country.
On the power to grant licences, he said: “The spectrums do not belong to licensees, but to the federal government and it can use it either for broadcasting, telecom or any other thing. The impression is given that those enjoying it today can do so forever.
