There were fears on Saturday that the Federal Government might have perfected plans to use the suspension of the operations of Twitter to target opposition and critical voices.
The move by the Federal Government to prosecute those who use Twitter via VPN and other bypasses after the announcement of the ban on the operations of the microblogging site reinforced the fears in the opposition circles.
A watcher of the development said that what they were probably aiming at was to wait for people who made critical statements about government to be quoted to have used Twitter to tweet their views and subsequent escalation of the same in other media platforms and such persons might be asked to explain how and why he or she patronised Twitter after suspension of its operations.
But a lawyer said that “they cannot enforce that under any law. Perhaps they want to rely on the law on sedition in the Miscellaneous Offences Act. But they cannot secure any conviction on points of Law.”
Meanwhile, there were reports that some prominent Nigerians may be invited by the relevant security agencies to explain how they got to use Twitter after the ban of its operations in the country.
The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, RCCG, Pastor E.A. Adeboye, Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, former Aviation Minister Femi Fani-Kayode, and some others who used Twitter on Saturday, the day the Federal Government directed Telcos to block access to Twitter through them might be interrogated to find out how they circumvented the ban, preparatory to prosecution if their explanation did not absolve them.
The announcement of the ban since Friday has sparked outrage as the president has been described as a dictator who doesn’t respect the rights of the citizens to express their opinions.
After the ban was enforced, Nigerians found other ways to access Twitter with the use of VPNs, and personalities have been using that means to also access Twitter platform.
The governor of Oyo state, Seyi Makinde made a tweet Saturday morning berating President Buhari’s order on Twitter while pleading that he reversedthe order.
Statement by Governor Seyi Makinde Regarding the Suspension of Twitter’s Operations in Nigeria by the Federal Government.
It has become imperative for me to release a statement regarding the suspension of Twitter’s operations in Nigeria by the Federal Government. pic.twitter.com/DbxVpAbmWq
— Seyi Makinde (@seyiamakinde) June 5, 2021
The general overseer of RCCG, Pastor EA Adeboye also posted on his twitter page some minutes ago.
No Retreat No Surrender #WeMove #ForJesus pic.twitter.com/oaDO1KXWmD
— Pastor Adeboye (@PastorEAAdeboye) June 5, 2021
A former minister of aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode also posted on his twitter page after the ban which means they used VPNs to access the twitter space.
I have been reliably informed that it is the intention of the FG to eventually close down social media completely in Nigeria. Until that time comes they intend to make it a criminal offence to use social media without NBC approval or registration.
Nigeria is now a police state!
— Femi Fani-Kayode (@realFFK) June 5, 2021
In a swift riposte, the Attorney General of he Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, on Saturday issued a statement ordering the prosecution of Twitter Ban offenders or those who breach the suspension order.
The AGF directed the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF) at his office to swing into action and commence in earnest the process of prosecution of violators of the Federal Government de-activation of operations of Twitter in Nigeria.
According to a statement by his Special Assistant (Media and Public Relations), Dr Umaru Jubrilu Gwandu, “The DPPF is to liase with the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy, National Communication Communication (NCC) and other relevant government agencies to ensure the speedy prosecution of offenders without any further delay.”
Although, the specifics and particulars of potential offenders envisaged were not expressely stated in the statement, there were indications that the government was referring to those who still patronise Twitter using such bypass as VPN and others.
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