By our reporter| The United States on Saturday joined the growing number of voices condemning the Nigerian government’s Friday decision to suspend Twitter operations in the country.
Alabingo.com reported that the federal government suspended Twitter operations in Nigeria after the social network deleted tweets from the official account of President Muhamamdu Buhari which referenced the country’s civil war over attacks on security officers and government facilities in the East by suspected IPOB militants.
But the United States government chided the Nigerian government over the decision to suspend the microblogging company operations.
“Nigeria’s constitution provides for freedom of expression,” a statement from the US Mission in Nigeria said.
“The Government’s recent #Twitterban undermines Nigerians’ ability to exercise this fundamental freedom and sends a poor message to its citizens, investors and businesses.
“Banning social media and curbing every citizen’s ability to seek, receive, and impart information undermines fundamental freedoms.
“As President Biden has stated, our need for individual expression, open public conversation, and accountability has never been greater.
“The path to a more secure Nigeria lies in more, not less communication, alongside concerted efforts toward unity, peace, and prosperity.”
However, the Presidency on Saturday defended its decision to “temporarily” ban Twitter, insisting that the decision was long overdue.
According to presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, the suspension wasn’t a “knee-jerk reaction” to the social media network’s deletion of President Muhammadu Buhari’s tweets, as Twitter has long been accused of spreading “misinformation and fake news” which can have “real world violent consequences.”
“The temporary suspension of Twitter is not just a response to the removal of the President’s post,” the statement said.
“There has been a litany of problems with the social media platform in Nigeria, where misinformation and fake news spread through it have had real world violent consequences. All the while, the company has escaped accountability.
“Major tech companies must be alive to their responsibilities. They cannot be allowed to continue to facilitate the spread of religious, racist, xenophobic, and false messages capable of inciting whole communities against each other, leading to loss of many lives. This could tear some countries apart.”
“. . . the removal of President Buhari’s tweet was disappointing,” the statement continued. “The censoring seemed based on a misunderstanding of the challenges Nigeria faces today.”
IPOB is a group, proscribed by a Nigerian court, seeking secession of a chunk of Southern Nigeria.
“The tweet was not a threat, but a statement of fact.”
“A terrorist organisation (IPOB) poses a significant threat to the safety and security of Nigerian citizens.
“When the President said that they will be treated ‘in a language they understand,’ he merely reiterated that their force shall be met with force. It is a basic principle of security services response world over.
“This is not promotion of hate, but a pledge to uphold citizens’ right to freedom from harm. The government cannot be expected to capitulate to terrorists.
“IPOB is proscribed under Nigerian law. Its members murder innocent Nigerians. They kill policemen and set government property on fire. Now, they have amassed a substantial stockpile of weapons and bombs across the country.
“Twitter does not seem to appreciate the national trauma of our country’s civil war. This government shall not allow a recurrence of that tragedy,” the statement concluded.
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