Twitter Ban: Malami’s Prosecution Threats, Its Implication

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Despite international pressure, the Nigerian government has refused to budge on the demands for it to rescind its Twitter ban order.

Instead, it has issued fresh directives that broadcasters in the country refrain from using Twitter to access information.

What are the implications, democratic rights, and freedom of speech?

The Nigerian Government had on June 5 suspended indefinitely the operations of the microblogging and social networking service Twitter in Nigeria, on the grounds of persistent use of the platform for “activities are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence”.

Read Also: NBC BANS BROADCAST STATIONS FROM USE OF TWITTER

The Federal Government’s action followed Twitter’s deleting of the tweets and videos of President Muhammadu Buhari’s war comments.

With a threat to prosecute those still using Twitter and the ban on broadcasters from using Twitter,
a flurry of lawsuits seems inevitable with many seeing the government’s action as an attempt to silence criticism of the government.

The government may also be treading on illegalities as for now, there is no law in Nigeria backing its action.

So far, the United States government and other world powers have condemned the Nigerian authorities, asking them to respect the citizen’s right to freedom of expression by reversing the suspension.

By banning Twitter, Nigeria has aligned itself with countries known for having little or no regard for democratic rights.