Osinbajo in Rwanda expresses concerns over evils of hate speech

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has described as frightening the resurgence of hate speech, not just in Africa but also in Europe and other countries.

He, therefore, prayed that no nation in the world would again go through what Rwanda went through owing to hate speech.

This was contained in a statement his spokesman, Laolu Akande, released on Monday in Abuja.

According to Laolu, the Vice President made this known to newsmen when he spoke to them shortly after participating in the activities commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Rwandan Genocide which held in Kigali on Sunday.

“The resurgence of hate speech is frightening for everyone we see in different countries not just in Africa but also in Europe.

“So, I think that there are many leaders today who want to ensure that we do not ever see a repeat of what happened, the genocide that happened here in Rwanda or anywhere else in the world for that matter,” he said.

On how to avoid a repeat of the Rwanda experience, Osinbajo spoke on the need for politicians, religious leaders as well as leaders in different areas of the society to guide against acts that incite and cause disorder.

He said, “I think that it is important, that we recognise, especially for the people, religious leaders and politicians.

“It is important that we recognise sometimes that it is easy to push things to the tipping point to create a situation just by inciting words that can completely go out of control.

“I think we have learnt; a lot of us, a lot of African countries do not want to see a repeat of what happened in Rwanda.

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“If you listened to some of the speeches here today, it is very obvious that the wounds for Rwanda were very deep and they are still healing.

“So, at 25 years on, you can still feel the pain, you can still hear in their speeches, in their voices and in their experiences, this is still a very deep wound.’’

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