Omoyele Sowore, a Nigerian activist, chastised musician Adekunle Gold for the situation of a young man named Adeboye Samuel.
According to Naija News, Adeboye was taken to court after making a social media accusation about the singer’s daughter.
In response to the news, Sowore described how Adekunle had written a contentious article disparaging former president Goodluck Jonathan.
He claimed that because of the right to free expression, it had spread without any consequences.
The message, “Dear God, if you give us Dagrin back, we will give you Jonathan in return,” was shared during the period in 2012 when Nigerians fiercely protested the Goodluck Jonathan administration’s suspension of fuel subsidies.
“@AdekunleGold in 2012 openly criticized then-President @GoodluckJonathan,” Sowore said on 𝕏. We would have been on the streets demanding his immediate release if he had been detained for such comments back then, when it was legitimately referred to as free speech.
“How, therefore, does someone who profited from freedom of expression go on to utilize the police, courts, and the harsh cybercrime framework against regular Nigerians over social media exchanges and online banter years later?
“When you are helpless, you cannot enjoy free speech, and as soon as you get influence, it becomes illegal. Everyone must have the right to free speech on social media, including politicians, activists, celebrities, and impoverished young Nigerians.
Sowore called on the Nigeria Police Force to cease serving as the wealthy and well-known’s private army. Additionally, he called on the judiciary to refrain from imposing excessive penalties for online statements that ought never to be considered crimes in the first place.
