DigitalSENSE Business News recalls
that media was recently awash that the Nigerian government had signed a $40
Million contract with an Israel-based company, Elbit Systems, to monitor internet
communication in Nigeria, while another report has it that FG has set aside
$61.9 Million for ‘Wise
Intelligence Network Harvest Analyzer System’, Open Source Internet Monitoring
System, Personal Internet Surveillance System And Purchase Of Encrypted Communication
Equipment.”
The coalition is made up of Budgit, Centre for Information Technology Awareness and
Development, Co-Creation Hub, Development Information Network, Enough-is-Enough
Nigeria, Fantsuam Foundation, Media Rights Agenda, Paradigm Initiative Nigeria,
Wennovation Hub, West African NGONetwork and Women’s Technology Empowerment
Centre.
The group in a press statement made
available to DigitalSENSE
Business News weekend acknowledged the importance of Internet as a platform
for governance, education, commerce, and indeed for all social engagements, saying
that the surveillance attempt on the Internet in Nigeria could take the nation many years back into the
military era, when surveillance became a tool of oppression by the State.
They also outlined five points to buttress their position including that the
government must protect the privacy of all citizens and this should not be
violated through such unwarranted surveillance of all technology-mediated communication; such as
communication with friends and loved ones by email, Short Messaging Service (SMS)
and chat.
Equally,
the coalition said its huge waste of public resources with absolutely no return
on investment because as an open platform, the Internet has a reasonable amount
of safeguards against criminal uses. In addition, the current legal instruments
– if effectively employed – provide for adequate non-intrusive surveillance of
suspected criminals.
They
further describe the contracts as monumental waste of efforts in addressing
security challenges because criminals who use the Internet for criminal
purposes usually deploy sophisticated encryption technologies for which the
surveillance of mail reading and interception of other communications would
disproportionately affect the average and less technically-sophisticated
citizen.
According
to the group, the contract is a total negation of the local content principle
that the government through the National Information Technology Development
Agency (NITDA) has been promoting and which is necessary for the repositioning
of the national economy to achieve the goals of Vision 20:2020.
Additionally,
they told DigitalSENSE Business News that if government is interested in fighting cyber crime, it would
focus attention on legislating specific and better targeted cybercrime-related
laws that have been waiting for government action at various stages.
Insisting
that this measure by FG is a flagrant violation of the constitutional guarantee
of the privacy of citizens as provided for in Section 37 of the 1999
Constitution, which stipulates in very clear terms that “The privacy of
citizens, their homes, correspondence, telephone conversations and telegraphic
communications is hereby guaranteed and protected.”
The group pointed out that only permissible circumstances under which this right may be restricted are those stated in Section 45(1) of the Constitution, which means that the measure taken must be in accordance with a “law that is reasonably justifiable in a democratic society” to protect the stated interests or the rights and freedoms of other persons.
Remmy Nweke/DigitalSENSE Business News
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