#TwitterBan: Canada, EU, UK, US, Others Offer Assistance To FG

The diplomatic missions of Canada, the European Union (Delegation to Nigeria), the Republic of Ireland, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States of America have expressed readiness to assist Nigeria in achieving unity, peace and prosperity.

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This was in reaction to the federal government’s decision to ban the operations of microblogging platform, Twitter, on Friday.

The missions condemned the action, and sought better communication between the government of Nigeria and its people.

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They described the ban and proposal for social media registration as disappointing and an infringement on fundamental human rights of free expression and access to information.

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The statement was titled ‘Joint statement from the diplomatic missions of Canada, the European Union (Delegation to Nigeria), the Republic of Ireland, Norway, 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, Norway, 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 rights 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.

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“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.”

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