The President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Mazi Afam Osigwe addressing young lawyers at the 2026 NBA Young Lawyers Forum Maiduguri Branch Summit. The President of the Nigerian Bar Association, Afam Osigwe, SAN, has raised concerns over the alleged misuse of the Cybercrimes Act to suppress free speech in Nigeria, describing it as a deliberate muzzling of expression under the pretext of combating cybercrime and defamation. “Free speech is being muzzled in Nigeria under the guise of charging people to court and investigating them for cyber crime and criminal defamation. The NBA president warned that such actions transform the courts into “an oppressive tool.”“This is a violation of the right to freedom of expression and an abuse of the democratic space. Originally enacted in 2015 and amended in 2024, the law seeks to address online fraud, cyberterrorism and related offences.

Source: Punch February 12, 2026 10:43 UTC