Through its Ministry of Information and Culture today, the Nigerian government announced its decision to suspend the operations of social media platform Twitter in the country.<\/p>\n
The statement, made by Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, and signed off by his media aide Segun Adeyemi, could see telecoms in the country prevent Nigerians from using Twitter.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the statement issued by the ministry:<\/p>\n
\nThe Federal Government has suspended indefinitely the operations of the microblogging and social networking service Twitter in Nigeria. The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, announced the suspension in a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, citing the presistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria\u2019s corporate existence.<\/p>\n
The Minister said the Federal Government has also directed the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to immediately commence the process of licensing all OTT and social media operations in Nigeria.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Today\u2019s announcement is a culmination of events that have happened this past week. Yesterday, Twitter deleted tweets and videos<\/a> of President Muhammadu Buhari making threats of punishment to a sect called IPOB in the South-Eastern part of the country after he blamed them for attacks on government buildings. He then referenced Nigeria\u2019s civil war events in the 1960s, which seemed to offend many Nigerians.<\/p>\n
Buhari, who was the country\u2019s Head of State in the 1980s and served in the army against secessionists, said young Nigerians in the country\u2019s southeastern part were too young to remember the horrible events that occurred during the war. According to him, the activities of the present-day secessionists are likely headed toward war; hence, it was proactive to stop them beforehand with force.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose of us in the fields for 30 months, who went through the war, will treat them in the language they understand,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Twitter chose to delete the tweet after violating its abusive behaviour policy and several calls by Nigerians to take it down. Twitter also suspended the president\u2019s account, leaving it in a \u201cread-only mode\u201d for 12 hours.<\/p>\n
Following its decision, Mr Mohammed called out<\/a> the social media giant by saying its decision was biased and said the president had a right to express his thoughts on events that affect the country. He also raised suspicion about the platform\u2019s intention in the country. \u201cTwitter may have its own rules; it\u2019s not the universal rule. If Mr President anywhere in the world feels very bad and concerned about a situation, he is free to express such views\u2026 The mission of Twitter in Nigeria is very, very suspect,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
In a retaliation act, Nigeria has proceeded to suspend the platform\u2019s operations in the country. While Twitter doesn\u2019t have any offices in the country, this announcement can still play out. And although there hasn\u2019t been any social media ban yet, Nigeria\u2019s current administration is no stranger to making ploys to restrict access to the internet, certain websites or social media. It was one of the tactics used during the EndSARS protests<\/a> that rocked the country in October 2020. Given past events in other African countries where the internet has been restricted or banned in one form or another, this is an obvious ploy by the Nigerian government to double down on these tactics and use telecoms operators to repress free speech.<\/p>\n
In an email to TechCrunch, Twitter, which recently opened its first African office in Ghana, said, \u201cthe announcement made by the Nigerian Government that they have suspended Twitter\u2019s operations in Nigeria is deeply concerning. We\u2019re investigating and will provide updates when we know more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Subsequently, the microblogging platform via its public policy account tweeted:<\/p>\n
\nWe are deeply concerned by the blocking of Twitter in Nigeria. Access to the free and #OpenInternet<\/a> is an essential human right in modern society.<\/p>\n
We will work to restore access for all those in Nigeria who rely on Twitter to communicate and connect with the world. #KeepitOn<\/a><\/p>\n