Nigerian filmmaker turned politician, Desmond Elliot, has learnt his voice against the Federal Government’s decision to ban Twitter operations in Nigeria.
On Friday the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, via a statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Segun Adeyemi, announced the indefinite suspension of Twitter operations in Nigeria.
The statement read,
“The Federal Government has suspended, indefinitely, the operations of the microblogging and social networking service, Twitter, in Nigeria.
“The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, announced the suspension in a statement issued in Abuja on Friday, citing the persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.
“The Minister said the Federal Government has also directed the National Broadcasting Commission to immediately commence the process of licensing all OTT and social media operations in Nigeria.”
Early today, the Twitter ban took effect to the displeasure of many Nigerians especially celebrities who use the platform to communicate directly with their fans.
In a Twitter thread, Elliot, the lawmaker representing Surulere at the Lagos State House of Assembly called on the federal government to reverse the suspension stating that the ban, ‘no matter the reasons proffered tramples upon our fundamental rights as people.’ The legislator said, “I want to admonish our government to always remember that the people’s right to express themselves freely must not be compromised.
This ban, no matter the reasons proffered tramples upon our fundamental rights as people.”
