The Nigerian government has said it has no intention of banning any social media again before the end of this administration but has cautioned against unregulated content on Twitter since the change of ownership.
Speaking at the 3rd edition of the ‘PMB Administration Scorecard 2015-2023’ series, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed said it was good to answer some of the questions asked regarding the activities of Twitter since it changed ownership.
He said: “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,” he told the press on Thursday.
“Many have even asked us if another ban is in the offing. Let me say this: We are closely monitoring the evolving developments at Twitter.
“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.”