By: Ilyasa Baa
The National Commission for Civil Education has said it will be monitoring what comes from politicians and released to the public domain so that hate speech is not used as political weapon.
The Commission has called on the media to be professional and not to allow politicians to use their platforms to spread hate speeches which have the potential to ignite chaos. It stressed the need for Journalists to provide level playing field for all registered political parties taking part in the forthcoming elections.
Chairman of the Commission, Kalilu Totangi said, ‘ we have put in place stringent measures to monitor the behaviors of politicians what they say in public and even what they say back door”. He noted that radio programs are being monitored on daily basis to look for inciting comments and hate speeches used by the ones running for public offices as well as their supporters. He said moderators should not allow any form of hate speech in the discussion programs they bring out to the public.
However, the Commission is working with the Office of National Security (ONS) to do the monitoring and would not hesitate to report to the Political Parties Regulation Commission (PPRC) if anyone defaults. “No one’s political ambition is worth any life, go out and vote when the time comes and go to your houses in peace”, the Commission further emphasized.
Meanwhile, social media is awash with hate speeches with some music being released abusing the President. Election management bodies have called for peaceful and fair elections devoid of hate speeches and verbal attacks. Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and media experts in Sierra Leone are of the view that the country should not copy anything from the just concluded Nigerian election as Sierra Leone goes to the poll on June 24th,2023.