The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, commenting on the regulation of the media, said that freedom of expression was not absolute anywhere in the world.
He said that as the various arms of governments are regulated, the media was not above regulation, as every institution cannot be allowed to “run amok”.
However, he said that he would not be a part of any bill that seeks to suppress the media, as it was the voice of the people.
Gbajabiamila said this in Abuja at an award ceremony tagged, ‘Recognising Good Governance and Legislative Excellence in the Face of Adversity’, according to NAN.
He said, “We cannot let every institution run amok, the executive is regulated, the judiciary to a large extent is regulated, the legislature is regulated; institutions are meant to be regulated, there is not one institution that is above the law.
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“Especially an institution that is meant to be the fourth Estate of the Realm, whose utterances or writing can make or break even a government.
“I will not be part of any bill that will seek to gag the press, no bill will come to the floor of the house that seeks to gag the press because the press is supposed to be the voice of the people.
“However, there is press freedom and there is freedom of expression; it is important for Nigerians to listen to one another and understand each other so that we can make progress as a nation.
“There is nowhere in the world where freedom of expression is absolute, freedom of expression is limited to the extent that it does not affect another person’s freedom.
“That is made abundantly clear in the Constitution itself. If you go to section 45, it states the freedom of expression you have is limited for sake of security, it is written in black and white.”
