Twitter is Nnamdi Kanu’s platform to ‘destabilise Nigeria’, says Lai Mohammed

Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, discloses that Twitter is the social media platform of choice for the leader of the banned Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, to “destabilise Nigeria”.

Mohammed declared this on Monday evening during an interview with BBC News Africa monitored by Top Naija. The Minister, while defending the Federal Government’s Twitter ban, maintained that the government will not permit any secessionist set the nation ablaze.

He said, “The government has suspended indefinitely the operations of Twitter in Nigeria because of the persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.

“The government also directed the regulatory agency which is the National Broadcasting Commission to immediately commence the process of licensing all OTT and social media operations in Nigeria.

“The main reason for this is because of the persistent use of Twitter in particular for activities that are inimical to the corporate existence of Nigeria.”

Mohammed added, “IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu in particular, his platform of choice to destabilise the country is Twitter.

“Twitter is actually the platform of choice for the separatist leader who resides outside Nigeria but issues directives for his members to attack the symbols of authority, such as policemen, soldiers, correctional centres, electoral offices and this has been done willfully and consistently without consequences using always the Twitter platform.”

The Minister added that the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, would decide the prosecution of people violating the Twitter ban.

Top Naija had earlier reported that the Federal Government, last week, suspended Twitter after the social media platform deleted a controversial civil war post by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Mohammed had criticised Twitter of double standards for sparing Kanu’s tweets yet put a stop to his principal.

Twitter, afterwards, deleted a tweet by Kanu where he threatened that “any army they send to #Biafraland will die there. None will return alive even if it means sacrificing my people”.

The Buhari government has since experienced harsh criticism for what many characterised as a restriction of the right of expression. The global community comprising the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, among others have since slammed the Buhari government for the action but the Federal Government has been firm in its standpoint.