Last week, the Federal Government of Nigeria ordered a ban on the use of Twitter in Nigeria. And since then, several people – home and abroad – have aired their opinion regarding the latest development.
The motion to suspend the app in the country came after the removal of a tweet made by the President of Nigeria – Muhammadu Buhari.
According to Twitter, the tweet contradicts their code of conduct; hence, the removal.
However, the Presidency mentioned that the temporary suspension of the social media app is not solely due to the removal of his tweet there’s more to it.
Later, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity – Garba Shehu – stated that the Twitter community in Nigeria has many problems. And the propagation of false news is a paramount one.
‘’The spread of fake news via Twitter has led to real-world violent consequences in Nigeria. And the company has escaped accountability all this while,’’ he said.
‘’Nevertheless, the removal of President Buhari’s tweet was disappointing. The censoring seems based on a misunderstanding of the challenges Nigeria faces today.’’
‘’The President – in his address at the UN General Assembly – said that the world was shocked at the massacre of 50 worshippers by a lone gunman in New Zealand.’’
‘’This and similar crime cases are a product of social media networks risk seeping into the world of an emerging digital culture.’’
Meanwhile, a Civil Society Organization – Paradigm Initiative said that the directive of the Nigerian government toward the suspension of Twitter use is an abuse of the fundamental rights of citizens of Nigeria.
Presently, the government of Nigeria is yet to announce a date to lift the suspension of the use of Twitter. And it appears there is no end in sight for now.
