New Telegraph

Twitter ban lift: FG has no right to regulate freedom of opinion – Minority Reps

The minority caucus in the House of Representatives has described the “declaration” by the federal government of having lifted its ‘unconstitutional” ban on use of Twitter in Nigeria as a further demonstration of its appetite to suppress constitutionally guaranteed rights of citizens in Nigeria. Minority leader, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu disclosed this in a statement on Friday in Abuja.

He said “The caucus holds that freedom of speech and opinion by Nigerians, including expressing such through social media tools like Twitter, are clearly guaranteed in the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and cannot be subjected to partisan approval or regulation under a democratic rule.

“That is why at the wake of the ban on the use of Twitter in Nigeria in June 2021, the minority caucus in the House of Representatives forcefully condemned the decision as provocative, obnoxious and unjustifiable clampdown on the rights of Nigerians which also showed the APC government’s intolerance and aversion to the views, opinions and aspirations of Nigerian citizens, especially the youths, on matters of state.

“It was also in the light of that that the minority caucus in the National Assembly stood by the law and charged Nigerians to continue using Twitter irrespective of the unconstitutional ban, since they would not be contravening any known law in Nigeria or any international statutes. “The APC government should rather be apologising to Nigerians for infringing on their rights as well as for the huge economic losses recorded as a result of the ban.”

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