Twitter commends the Federal Government’s decision to lift the ban placed on its services in Nigeria since June 2021.
The company wrote on its public policy account that it was delighted with the restoration of its services in Nigeria.
“We are pleased that Twitter has been restored for everyone in Nigeria. Our mission in Nigeria and around the world is to serve the public conversation,” Twitter’s Public Policy team said in a tweet on Thursday.
“We are deeply committed to Nigeria, where Twitter is used by people for commerce, cultural engagement, and civic participation,” the tech giant Tweeted.
“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,” presidential aide, Garba Shehu, said in the wake of the suspension.
“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 the loss of many lives. This could tear some countries apart.”
The United States, the European Union, and Canada were among those who condemned the ban as a threat to freedom of expression in Africa’s most populous country, joining human rights organizations in doing so.
The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) had said in a statement on Wednesday that President Muhammadu Buhari “has approved the lifting of the suspension of Twitter operation in Nigeria effective from 12 am tonight.”
Recall Nigeria’s government suspended Twitter operations indefinitely on June 4, after it alleged that the micro-blogging site was being used to undermine “Nigeria’s corporate existence” through the spreading of fake news that have “violent consequences”.
The ban came two days after Twitter took down a controversial tweet by President Muhammadu Buhari which was seen by many as threatening violence against Nigerians of Igbo origin.
However, while the ban lasted many Nigerians had bypassed it by using Virtual Private Network (VPN) applications to sustain effective connection to the social media site.
SEB gathers that days after the suspension, the government directed broadcasting stations to suspend “patronage” of the platform. It described its further use by the broadcast stations as “unpatriotic.”
Premium Times reports that the ban on Twitter, costing Nigerian businesses billions of naira, was condemned by many Nigerians, civic groups and the international community, but the government claimed that “many agreements had been reached” with the social media platform ready to comply.
Submitting further, the report stated that “on Thursday night, the government said Twitter was committed to establishing a legal entity in Nigeria during the first quarter of 2022.
“The legal entity, it said, will register with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).
“Similarly, it said the social media platform has agreed to appoint a designated country representative to interface with Nigerian authorities.
“Other resolutions include Twitter reportedly agreeing to comply with applicable tax obligations on its operations under Nigerian law”, the report concluded.
However, Twitter became once again accessible in Nigeria Thursday morning after the government lifted its ban.
Moreover, many particularly Nigerians have since dropped their opinion on the situation. Seen screenshots of some of the online comments at press time:
Actress Nse Ikpe Etim has also reacted to federal government lifting suspension of Twitter operations in the Nigeria..
Stating her take on the suspension of the ban which comes ahead of the 2023 elections, Nse stated that "Twitter must really have an effect on the election".
See the screenshot of her message below:
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