Ezekwesili Slams Speaker Abbas Over Controversial Counter Subversion Bill

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Former Education Minister Oby Ezekwesili has criticized House Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and the National Assembly over the Counter Subversion Bill 2024, which proposes harsh penalties for Nigerians who refuse to recite the national anthem. Ezekwesili denounces the bill as an ill-conceived distraction from more pressing national issues.

Oby Ezekwesili, former Minister of Education, has sharply condemned Speaker Tajudeen Abbas and the National Assembly for introducing the Counter Subversion Bill 2024. This bill, sponsored by Abbas, proposes a fine of N5 million or a 10-year prison sentence for individuals who refuse to recite the national anthem, or both.

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Ezekwesili criticized the bill as a misguided and irrelevant measure, reflecting poorly on the lawmakers’ understanding of Nigeria’s real issues. Through her X handle, she stated, “I am certain that the Speaker of the @HouseNGR @Speaker_Abbas @nassnigeria knows this for a fact. Surely, he must know that the so-called #CounterSubversionBill which he introduced – and alleged to be in its second reading – is a silly flight of fancy that further reveals how unserious and irrelevant the lawmakers are to the Nigerian condition.”

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She further challenged the National Assembly to prosecute her for her refusal to adopt the old national anthem, reinstated by President Bola Tinubu in May. “I for example have kept my public statement and only stand and sing the REAL Nigerian National Anthem (Arise O Compatriots), never the Colonial and ‘tribal’ one that he and his colleagues conspired with @NGRPresident and kangarooed into ‘law’ in violation of Constitutional processes,” Ezekwesili said.

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She added, “But before then, please note that if there is any group of Nigerians that deserve a Subversion Act, it is you and your colleagues at the @nassnigeria who consistently subverts the progress of Nigeria and her people through your legendary public misdemeanors that accumulate into Bad Governance.”