Buhari goes tough on #TwitterBan, orders strict enforcement

President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday ordered strict enforcement of the ban of Twitter operations in Nigeria, including prosecution of offenders.

The enforcement directives were conveyed by the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami. The Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice in a statement on Saturday AGF conveyed the directive of Malami for immediate prosecution of offenders of the ban on Twitter operations in Nigeria.

The Director of Public Affairs in the Ministry, Umar Jibrilu Gwandu, disclosed that AGF Malami has directed the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF) to immediately commence the prosecution of violators of the #Twitter ban.

According to Gwandu: “Malami directed the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF) at the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, 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.

“Malami directed the DPPF to liaise with the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy, National Communication (NCC) and other relevant government agencies to ensure the speedy prosecution of offenders without any further delay.”

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, on Friday announced the government’s ban of Twitter in Nigeria, noting that the ban was placed because of the persistent use of the platform for activities that are “capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.”

Meanwhile, telecommunication operators in the country blocked Twitter, disconnecting Twitter users in Nigeria from access to the microblogging website. Some users were, however, said to defy the government directive to hang on to their Twitter service through Virtual Private Networks (VPN).