The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has urged President Bola Tinubu to instruct the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, to immediately withdraw the Lawful Interception of Communications Regulations, 2019.

In a statement on Sunday, SERAP described the regulations as unconstitutional and incompatible with Nigeria’s international obligations.

The organisation said the rules create a broad mass surveillance framework that undermines Nigerians’ constitutionally and internationally protected rights, including the rights to privacy and freedom of expression.

“SERAP, in the statement, urged the government to urgently initiate a transparent and inclusive legislative process to ensure that any lawful interception framework fully complies with constitutional safeguards, judicial oversight requirements, and Nigeria’s international obligations.

“The Regulations grant overly broad and vague powers to intercept communications on grounds such as ‘national security,’ ‘economic wellbeing,’ and ‘public emergency,’ without adequate judicial safeguards, independent oversight, transparency, or effective remedies.

“Serious interferences with fundamental rights cannot be authorised through subsidiary regulations or exercised in secrecy without strict safeguards.

“Surveillance measures that lack strict necessity, proportionality and independent judicial oversight can easily be weaponised against political opponents, journalists, civil society actors and election observers,” the organization stated.

SERAP’s call follows recent allegations by former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai that a phone conversation involving the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, had been intercepted.

Nasir El-Rufai, who appeared recently on Arise TV, said he learned of an alleged plan to arrest him upon his return to the country on Thursday through a leaked conversation from the phone of the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.