\u201cMost Nigerians are unhappy with President Muhammadu Buhari\u2019s decision to suspend Twitter indefinitely,\u201d the Editor for International Center for Investigative Reporting in Abuja, Ajibola Amzat reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Speaking on Eyewitness News<\/strong> on Monday, June 7, 2021, Mr. Amzat said the President\u2019s decision has become unpopular as it infringes on the fundamental human rights of citizens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis decision by the government of Nigeria is a clear violation of the fundamental human rights and freedoms of Nigerians. You cannot tell Nigerians not to have access to a platform on which people not only communicate, but transact business. A lot of transactions take place on the platform.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe President cannot just decide to deny people access to the platform just because a tech giant has offended him. This is what the decision taken by the President means. Nobody was consulted, there was no debate whatsoever, the President just went ahead and took the decision.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cMajority of Nigerians are very unhappy,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nigeria\u2019s government has suspended Twitter\u2019s operations in the country \u201cindefinitely\u201d, as announced by the country\u2019s Information Minister, Lai Mohammed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The ban is due to \u201cthe persistent use of the platform for activities\u2026 capable of undermining Nigeria\u2019s corporate existence\u201d, according to a statement released on Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The decision was taken days after a tweet by President Muhammadu Buhari was removed for breaching the site\u2019s rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Information Minister previously criticised the US social media giant\u2019s decision, calling it \u201cdouble standards\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The site \u2013 which was still available to users in Nigeria following Friday\u2019s announcement \u2013 removed a tweet sent by the president on 1 June.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It referred to the 1967-70 Nigerian Civil War and to treating \u201cthose misbehaving today\u201d in \u201cthe language they will understand\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A Twitter spokesperson said the post \u201cwas in violation of Twitter Rules. The account owner will be required to delete the violative Tweet and spend 12 hours with their account in read-only mode\u201d. The statement gave no further details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The statement also revealed that the national broadcasting regulator, NBC, has been told to start \u201cthe process of licensing all OTT [internet streaming services] and social media operations in Nigeria\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Source: citinewsroom.com<\/p>\n\n\n\n Send your news stories to\u00a0dannyboy744@gmail.com<\/a>\u00a0and via WhatsApp on +233 266777777<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n