House of Reps Moves to Safeguard Judges from Online Attacks

On Thursday, the House of Representatives took preliminary steps to enhance protections for judicial officers against intimidation, harassment, and personal attacks, particularly through social media. The House urged Nigerians, media organizations, and legal practitioners to differentiate between legitimate criticism of court judgments and actions that undermine judicial independence.

This initiative followed a motion titled ‘Need to safeguard judicial independence and protect Judicial Officers from unwarranted intimidation, harassment and public vilification through Social Media and Broadcasting Networks’, moved by Ademorin Kuye, the member representing Shomolu Federal Constituency of Lagos State. Kuye emphasized that judicial independence is crucial to Nigeria’s constitutional democracy and warned that ongoing campaigns of intimidation could erode public confidence in the judiciary.

He noted that personal attacks on judges often overshadow the legal principles involved in their judgments. While acknowledging the constitutional right to freedom of expression, Deputy Minority Whip Mansur Soro (Rep, Darazo/Ganjuwa) cautioned against undermining this right in the context of judicial criticism.