Political parties must curb hate speech, cyberbullying — Yiaga Africa

By Linda Ogbonna

Yiaga Africa has urged political parties to strengthen internal discipline and sanction members who engage in hate speech, cyberbullying and character assassination.

Mr Michael Ogunshola, Lagos State Focal Person, Yiaga Africa, made the call in an interview on Wednesday in Lagos.

Ogunshola said political parties had a responsibility to regulate the conduct of their members, candidates and supporters, particularly as political activities intensified ahead of future elections.

He called for the adoption and strict enforcement of internal codes of conduct that clearly defined unacceptable language and behaviour during political campaigns.

According to him, such codes should contain specific sanctions for violations to ensure that members understood the consequences of engaging in abusive, defamatory or inflammatory conduct.

“Every political party should have a well-defined code of conduct stating the sanctions that will be imposed on any member who violates the rules.

“If members, followers or candidates are sanctioned for engaging in these activities, the menace will be drastically reduced,” he said.

Ogunshola said political parties should also clearly define what constitutes abusive language and ensure that campaign messages focus on policies and programmes rather than personal attacks.

He said political communication should allow candidates to present their plans and explain how they intended to address issues affecting citizens, rather than resorting to insults or attacks against opponents.

“All campaign messages should be policy-based rather than based on insults.

“Our democracy has gone beyond one party insulting the other. What we need to know is what you have for the people,” he said.

The Yiaga Africa official said character assassination could have consequences beyond the electoral period, noting that inflammatory campaigns could damage relationships and create divisions that persisted after elections.

He urged political parties to require their officials, candidates and supporters to sign campaign guidelines and commit themselves to respecting them throughout the electoral process.

Ogunshola also called for stronger internal accountability, stressing that party rules should apply equally to all members regardless of their political influence or position.

He said political leaders, including senators and other public officials, should not be exempted from accountability when they made defamatory or inflammatory statements.

“Political parties must be able to call their members to order, irrespective of their status. The rules should apply to everybody,” he said.

He further urged parties to suspend or expel members who used hate speech to mobilise online mobs against political opponents.

According to him, the widespread use of social media has made it easier for offensive and provocative messages to reach large audiences within a short period.

He said the activities of online trolls and supporters could amplify inflammatory messages, deepen political divisions and undermine public confidence in the democratic process.

He urged political parties to take responsibility for the conduct of their members and supporters online, rather than allowing offensive content to spread unchecked.

He also called for greater collaboration among political parties, security agencies, civil society organisations and other stakeholders to tackle hate speech, misinformation and cyberbullying.

The Yiaga Africa official stressed the need for political actors to promote issue-based campaigns and encourage citizens to make electoral choices based on candidates’ policies, competence and programmes.

He said political parties should also educate their members and supporters on responsible political communication and the consequences of spreading harmful or inflammatory content.

Ogunshola said the fight against hate speech should not be left to security agencies or regulators alone, but should begin within political parties through effective self-regulation and accountability mechanisms.

He said political parties committed to strengthening democracy must demonstrate that commitment through the conduct of their leaders, candidates, and supporters.

Recent election-related interventions by Yiaga Africa have similarly highlighted the need for political parties and candidates to reject violence and inflammatory rhetoric and uphold commitments to peaceful electoral conduct.

Yiaga Africa is a non-profit civic organisation that promotes democratic governance, human rights and civic participation across Africa through election observation, civic education and policy advocacy.

(NAN)