FG accuses Twitter of bias over removal of Buhari’s tweet

The federal government has lashed out at social media giant, Twitter, for playing alleged double standards on issues concerning Nigeria’s domestic issues, describing the company’s role in Nigeria as suspect.

Recall that President Muhammadu Buhari in a series of tweets on Tuesday, via his verified Twitter handle, @MBuhari, had tweeted “many of those misbehaving today are too young to be aware of the destruction and loss of lives that occurred during the Nigerian Civil War. Those of us in the fields for 30 months, who went through the war, will treat them in the language they understand.”

The president’s tweet was in reaction to widespread attacks on public facilities by unknown arsonists in the South East region.

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The tweet however sparked outrage on Tuesday evening with many social media users describing it as ‘genocidal’ and a direct threat to people of the South-East region of Nigeria.

In Twitter Rules and policies, the company explains the process of removing a tweet considered to have violated its rules.

“When we determine that a Tweet violated the Twitter Rules, we require the violator to remove it before they can Tweet again. We send an email notification to the violator identifying the Tweet(s) in violation and which policies have been violated. They will then need to go through the process of removing the violating Tweet or appealing our review if they believe we made an error,” it wrote.

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Reacting to the decision, Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said while the social media giant had conveniently ignored inciting tweets by the leader of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, and his cohorts, displaying the same biases it did during the #ENDSARS protest, where government and private properties were looted and set on fire, all in the name of right to protest, it found the President’s tweets offensive.

“Twitter may have its own rules; it’s not the universal rule. If Mr. President, anywhere in the world feels very bad and concerned about a situation, he is free to express such views. Now, we should stop comparing apples with oranges. If an organisation is proscribed, it is different from any other which is not proscribed.

“Two, any organisation that gives directives to its members, to attack police stations, to kill policemen, to attack correctional centres, to kill warders, and you are now saying that Mr. President does not have the right to express his dismay and anger about that? We are the ones guilty of double standards.

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“I don’t see anywhere in the world where an organisation, a person will stay somewhere outside Nigeria, and will direct his members to attack the symbols of authority, the police, the military, especially when that organisation has been proscribed. By whatever name, you can’t justify giving orders to kill policemen or to kill anybody you do not agree with,” he said.