Twitter ban - The African Mirror

Jun

2021

Nigeria’s Twitter ban is part of a larger attack on civil society

NELSON OLANIPEKUN FOUR years ago, Omoregie* and his friends were arrested without cause and taken into custody. When they got to the station, Omoregie watched as the police began to beat his friends. Afraid, he began to discreetly tweet about the attacks as they took place. I and many other Twitter users could read his fears while he called for help through his tweets. Taking action as a lawyer, I was able to secure his release within a few hours with the help of other activists through the police unit responsible for citizen complaints. I had been thinking of Omoregie…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Nigeria demands social media firms get local licence

NEWS

AFRICAN MIRROR REPORTER SOCIAL media firms wanting to operate in Nigeria must register a local entity and be licensed, the country's information minister has said, the government's latest move since it banned Twitter last week. "We are insisting that for you to operate in Nigeria you must first be a Nigerian company and be licensed by the broadcasting commission," said Lai Mohammed, Nigeria's information minister, of social media companies. The new regulations will include conditions for continued operation, Mohammed said, without elaborating. The move comes amidst what critics say is a broader crackdown on freedom of expression in Africa's most…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Twitter ban will harm Nigeria as a technology investment destination

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

IN recent years Lagos, Nigeria’s biggest city, has become Africa’s most attractive tech hub for investors. But that could be imperilled by the government’s decision to suspend Twitter’s operations in the country. TOLU OLAREWAJU, Lecturer in Economics, Staffordshire University Although no direct connection has been drawn, the ban came two days after Twitter took down a tweet by President Muhammadu Buhari. Twitter claimed the message had been deleted because it violated its rules against “abusive behaviour”. The ban could be in retaliation. A new chill entered into the relationship between Nigeria and Twitter in mid-April when the social media platform…

Jun

2021

By The African Mirror

Nigerians fight government’s Twitter ban with legal action

NEWS

KIM HARRISBERG ALMOST 200 Nigerians filed a lawsuit yesterday seeking to lift a ban on Twitter, describing the government's decision to block the site as stifling "any dissenting voice" and digital rights. The ban was announced on Friday, two days after the social media giant removed a post from President Muhammadu Buhari that threatened to punish regional secessionists, and the government said those who continued to use Twitter would be prosecuted. "The (suspension) negatively impacted millions of Nigerians who carry on their daily businesses and operational activities on Twitter," said Kolawole Oluwadare of the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP),…