The Nigerian Government says it is monitoring Twitter closely following its acquisition by Elon Musk.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said the monitoring has become imperative following the change of ownership of Twitter.
He noted that with an increase in the dissemination of fake news in the country, many have expressed fears of the possible banning of Twitter again.
“Many have asked for our reaction following reports that there has been a spike in fake news, disinformation, and
hate speech since the micro-blogging site changed ownership. Many have even asked us if another ban is in the offing”, he said.
The Minister however informed that the government has no intention of further banning any social media platform. He added that while the government upholds freedom of speech, it will not watch mischief makers destabilize the country through fake news.
“It has never been our intention to ban any social media platform or stifle free speech. Not at all. What happened in the case of Twitter is well-known to all.
“Twitter became a platform of choice for those who want to destabilize Nigeria, using fake news, disinformation, and hate speech.
“No nation will allow any social media platform to plunge it into anarchy. Definitely not Nigeria. But we have continued to engage positively with the different social media platforms, including Facebook, Google (owners of YouTube), and Twitter.
“We have no intention of banning any social media platform again. But we will also not sit by and allow any platform whatsoever to throw our nation into crisis.”
Between June 5 2021 and January 13, the Federal Government officially banned Twitter, restricting it from operating in the country after it deleted tweets made by President Muhammadu Buhari.
