A group of concerned Nigerians took to Twitter yesterday to protest against the controversial Non-Governmental Organisation, NGO regulatory bill which is about to be passed in the House of Representatives, with #StopTheNGOBill.

The controversial bill seeks to set up a federal agency to be known as the NGO Regulatory Commission, to regulate activities of NGO's and civil society organisations, CSOs, across the country. The bill proposes that NGOs require permission from the Government before they can raise money, spend money and a total restriction on all their activities.

Here's what the convener of the protest on Twitter, Caleb Somtochukwu Okeke wrote;

"Why are we not talking about the horrible NGO regulation bill about to be passed by the House of Reps?

Perhaps because you think it doesn't affect you? Perhaps the only thing that comes to your mind when we say NGO is a jobless group of people who give food to smiling children asked to pose for a camera?

I am thankful that we live in a time where the trifling echo of our voices can in some way matter. I am thankful that however marginal our contributions may be, however vacillating our stance to speak, there is a likelihood that we are being listened to anyway.

The NGO regulation bill is one of those things we need to speak against. In this bill, the government would reserve the power to police the activities of all Non Governmental Organizations.

To help you out of your confusion, Non Governmental Organizations include churches, mosques, student associations, August meetings, the sport club you founded with your best friend in your apartment in mushin, Catholic Women Organizations, any organization that's Non Governmental and of course the generic charity organizations.

Well in our usual hypocrisy the bill is going to exclude religious organizations, but every other institution is at risk.

Why this is crazy is because you'd require permission from the Government before you can raise money, spend money and a total restriction of your activities really.

Would I worry if this was happening in another country? No. There are positive sides to this bill. A startling number of NGO's have extorted funds and deserve to be answerable to some form of authority.

My grouse here is that this authority cannot be the pot bellied man in Abuja, smacking his teeth in a silly attempt at removing cigarette smoke and disregarding the files of people who have failed to "co-operate."

It cannot be the lose mouthed government secretary who waves you away and tells you, "Oga is not around, come back tomorrow" day after day as if your entire existence is for shuffling in an out of government offices.

There are people with severe health conditions who rely on the activities of these NGO's to survive, and the table of an over fed senator in Abuja is not the right place to deliberate life and death.

Scrutiny is good. I believe that sometimes inspection, analysis and accountability does yield good results especially when steered by the right hands.

But I also believe in integrity, transparency, in even handedness, in the awareness that we exist to make another's journey easier.

I believe in equity, in service, in the infinitesimal actions of kindness and the changes these small deeds can trigger.

But you would not find these qualities in Abuja. Not in that office filled with light, smelling of camphor, a globe spinning on its table and a framed impression of the Coat of Arms hanging on its wall.

You would not find it there."

Here are some tweets;

http://www.lailasblog.com/nigeria-trended-twitter-stopthengobill-heres/

Am I the only one who doesn't really understand these people's problem

All these funny politicians. The small money ngos are making, they want to receive their own share from them too.

can't they just fear being cursed by multitude for once...haba!!!

Zoo

Interesting

draconian bill


rubbish

Ok

Hmm

Another avenue for corruption, and the greatest stupidity of our reps, and sen in action

NGOS need to be regulated sha

This is what we get when we vote greedy bastards who masquerade as the saviour of the masses

Savemysoulnow:
NAIRALANDERS PLEASE HELP ME, MY LIFE IS IN DANGER.

Since 5 days ago, I've been receiving many calls from unknown people telling me that someone reported me to them that I'm sleeping with his wife.

Also, 3 days ago, someone posted the same thing on my facebook timeline.

Almost all my facebook friends were also messaging me that they heard that I slept with a woman.

Also, this morning, another unknown person called me to console me on the death of my sister [in which my sister is not dead at all]

What I noticed is that all the unknown callers keep mentioning my full names.

Please, Im a 19 year old boy and also a virgin, I'm a very shy person, I don't like walking with people, not to even talk of having sex with a married woman.
I've never meet the woman anywhere.


My hand is shaking seriously as I'm typing this.

Please what can I do?

Send the numbers to the police..
I think you should have created a topic for this..
So it hit FP?
I think those guys are just 419ners trying to trick you..
I think you should report to a higher authority

As if there are no more pressing needs to fix and legislate for. You see why we don't need the bi-cameral legislature ?

OK

Nu

Savemysoulnow:
NAIRALANDERS PLEASE HELP ME, MY LIFE IS IN DANGER.

Since 5 days ago, I've been receiving many calls from unknown people telling me that someone reported me to them that I'm sleeping with his wife.

Also, 3 days ago, someone posted the same thing on my facebook timeline.

Almost all my facebook friends were also messaging me that they heard that I slept with a woman.

Also, this morning, another unknown person called me to console me on the death of my sister [in which my sister is not dead at all]

What I noticed is that all the unknown callers keep mentioning my full names.

Please, Im a 19 year old boy and also a virgin, I'm a very shy person, I don't like walking with people, not to even talk of having sex with a married woman.
I've never meet the woman anywhere.


My hand is shaking seriously as I'm typing this.

Please what can I do?

You need the help of an NGO

wintersnow:



Send the numbers to the police..
I think you should have created a topic for this..
So it hit FP?
I think those guys are just 419ners trying to trick you..
I think you should report to a higher

I've created a thread for it sir.

Savemysoulnow:
NAIRALANDERS PLEASE HELP ME, MY LIFE IS IN DANGER.

Since 5 days ago, I've been receiving many calls from unknown people telling me that someone reported me to them that I'm sleeping with his wife.

Also, 3 days ago, someone posted the same thing on my facebook timeline.

Almost all my facebook friends were also messaging me that they heard that I slept with a woman.

Also, this morning, another unknown person called me to console me on the death of my sister [in which my sister is not dead at all]

What I noticed is that all the unknown callers keep mentioning my full names.

Please, Im a 19 year old boy and also a virgin, I'm a very shy person, I don't like walking with people, not to even talk of having sex with a married woman.
I've never meet the woman anywhere.


My hand is shaking seriously as I'm typing this.

Please what can I do?

Oga.. Kill yourself before u get annihilated

malware:
Most of these NGOs, mostly the foreign ones operate as espionage agents and they are usually for hostile purposes.... The need to regulate {not total ban} their activities is sacrosanct

How do you mean exactly?
So NGO's like SERAP would have to be regulated before they operate in Nigeria and you think the federal government will ever allow them operate unhindered?

malware:
Most of these NGOs, mostly the foreign ones operate as espionage agents and they are usually for hostile purposes.... The need to regulate {not total ban} their activities is sacrosanct

Spy on Nigeria? Laughable. Everybody knows what Nigerians are up to so who wants to spy on them. Foreign naval ship docked in Nigeria for a long period of time and nobody sniffed them out. Abeg nobody spies on us. Yes spies exist, but on Nigeria? Why waste time on us?