Canada, EU, UK, US, and the Republic of Ireland
had in a joint statement on Saturday condemned the Twitter ban by the Muhammadu
Buhari-led administration.
The statement was titled, ‘Joint Statement
From The Diplomatic Missions Of Canada, The European Union (Delegation To
Nigeria), The Republic Of Ireland, The United Kingdom And The United States Of
America’.
It read, “The diplomatic missions of
Canada, the European Union (Delegation to Nigeria), the Republic of Ireland,
the United Kingdom and the United States of America convey our disappointment
over the Government of Nigeria’s announcement suspending #Twitter and proposing
registration requirements for other social media.
“We strongly support the fundamental human
right of free expression and access to information as a pillar of democracy in
Nigeria as around the world and these rights apply online as well as offline.
“Banning systems of expression is not the
answer. These measures inhibit access to information and commerce at precisely
the moment when Nigeria needs to foster inclusive dialogue and expression of
opinions, as well as share vital information in this time of the COVID-19
pandemic.
“The path to a more secure Nigeria lies in
more, not less, communication to accompany the concerted efforts of Nigeria’s
citizens in fulsome dialogue toward unity, peace and prosperity.
“As Nigeria’s partners, we stand ready to
assist in achieving these goals.”
However, the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign
Affairs responded to their joint statement by inviting the Ambassadors to a
meeting today at 12 noon.
This was contained in an invitation to
pressmen issued on Monday morning by Kimiebi Ebienfa of the Crisis Monitoring
and Public Communications Division of the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“I am directed to inform that following the
recent ban on Twitter by the Federal Government and Press Statement issued by
some Heads of Diplomatic Missions Accredited to Nigeria on the subject matter,
the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, His Excellency, Geoffrey Onyeama
has invited the affected Ambassadors to a meeting today at 12 noon.
“The venue is Minister’s Conference Room,
8th Floor.
“You are here invited to cover the Meeting.
Thanks for your usual cooperation,” the invite read.
The Nigeria government has suspended
Twitter after the platform deleted a controversial civil war post by President
Muhammadu Buhari.
The Buhari-led government said the
“persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining
Nigeria’s corporate existence” was the reason for the suspension.
The mobile operators have now blocked their
customers in the country from using Twitter, but many Nigerians have switched
to the use of Virtual Private Networks to bypass the blockage.