40 million Nigerians use Twitter, reverse ban now__ US pressures Buhari govt

The United States government has continued to pressure the Buhari-led government to lift the suspension on Twitter ban in the country, saying over 40 million uses the bird app.

Increasing their reaction to the banning, US Mission in Nigeria on Wednesday conveyed the messages of the top American official, Samantha Power.

Power was the 28th US Ambassador to the United Nations from 2013 to 2017 and also senior diplomat is the current Administrator of the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

“There are nearly 40 M Twitter users in #Nigeria, and the country is home to Africa’s largest tech hub,” Power said.

“This suspension is nothing more than state-sanctioned denial of free speech and should be reversed immediately. #KeepitOn.”

There are nearly 40 M Twitter users in #Nigeria, and the country is home to Africa's largest tech hub. This suspension is nothing more than state-sanctioned denial of free speech and should be reversed immediately. #KeepitOn https://t.co/j6AqgbIlOm

— Samantha Power (@PowerUSAID) June 8, 2021

Meanwhile, Trump when reacting said he supported the move of the Buhari regime said wish he had done the same when he was the president.

“Perhaps I should have done it while I was President. But Zuckerberg kept calling me and coming to the White House for dinner telling me how great I was. 2024?” Donald Trump said in his statement.

Last Friday, federal authorities sanctioned Twitter indefinitely after Buhari’s tweet was deleted.

The President had stated that many of those misbehaving in the South-East region was young and did not witness the destruction and loss of lives that occurred during the civil war.

“Those of us in the fields for 30 months, who went through the war, will treat them in the language they understand”, the former General warned.

After the deletion, Information Minister, Lai Mohammed, condemned “the persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence”.

The government directed the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to start the process of licensing all OTT and social media operations.

NBC was also ordered to force broadcast stations – Television and Radio – to stop using Twitter or face the consequences.

The actions are being criticized by Nigerians, countries, local and international organizations.

On Tuesday, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and concerned citizens filed a lawsuit against the Buhari administration over “the unlawful suspension of Twitter”.

The plaintiffs, in the suit filed by a legal luminary, Femi Falana (SAN), want an end to the criminalization of Nigerians using the microblogging site, the repression of human rights, freedom of expression, access to information, and media freedom.