#TwitterBan: The Gainers & Losers As Nigeria Gradually Slips Into Repression

Nigeria’s ban on Twitter immediately cut off an estimated 40 million users.

Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, had said that social media companies wishing to operate in the country must register as a local entity and be licensed by the federal government.

“We are insisting that for you to operate in Nigeria you must first be a Nigerian company and be licensed by the broadcasting commission,” had Mohammed said, referring to social media firms.

The move followed the suspension of microblogging and social networking service, Twitter. Authorities allege that the platform was a threat to Nigeria’s corporate existence as it encourages the dissemination of falsehood.

“Twitter has consistently made its platform available to those who are threatening Nigeria’s corporate existence; that is the reason for suspending their operations in Nigeria,” Mohammed said.

Although, the social media giant had deleted a tweet by President Muhammadu Buhari just days before. In the tweet, the President had threatened to violently retaliate against a southeastern secessionist group’s alleged recent attacks on government facilities and personnel. Twitter claimed the tweet had violated its rules against “abusive behavior.”

In 2020, the microblogging platform provided protesters with a means to communicate and spread publicity during the #EndSARS protests aimed at the notorious Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) police unit but which later metamorphosed into demonstrations targeting governance and corruption.

Nigeria’s ban on Twitter immediately cut off an estimated 40 million users. The restriction, while celebrated by some, has caused a global outcry over freedom of expression and put the most populous African nation at the centre of a North-South divided discourse.

These 40 million users, primarily young southerners, use the platform to campaign against bad governance, societal ills as well as pass social commentaries on common issues affecting the Nigerian citizenry.

On the losing end…
The Nigerian government maybe the biggest loser yet because its decision to suspend Twitter indefinitely may have backfired and cost the country economically in terms of new investments into its technology sector. This could significantly affect economic productivity. Nigeria’s economy and even government have become increasingly reliant on digital media. The irony was obvious when the government announced its ban on the microblogging site via a tweet on the same platform.

NetBlocks, which tracks internet governance, estimated that each day of the Twitter shutdown will cost the Nigerian economy over 2 billion naira ($6 million). Two billion naira multiplied by 17 days; you might want to do the maths.

What may seem like a minority population of Nigerian youths who are active on Twitter, who have turned to Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) as a result of the ban may also have a share of the loss incurred, maybe not monetary. The use of safe VPNs come at a cost. Nigerians who can’t afford paid versions will have to settle for free versions, which may expose them to data theft or other forms of hacking.

Since the boom of Twitter and a host of other social media platforms, new job roles such as Social Media Manager, Social Media Strategist etc. have emerged. With the ban, a lot of persons mostly youths who fit into these job descriptions will be out of a job. How much more social media influencers?

The Winners
With the ban still very much in effect and corresponding threats from the federal government to prosecute violators of the ban, many public figures especially those not allied with the present administration, activists, members of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), among others still tweets voraciously. The likes of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Activist Aisha Yesufu, former Senators Shehu Sani and Dino Melaye, Comedian Mr Macaroni have continued to tweet, defying the federal government’s order.

Last week, Twitter users were able to campaign for the release of an 18-year-old teenager who gave birth while in pre-trial detention in Ondo State. She had been arrested 7 months ago at the peak of the #EndSARS protests for allegedly torching the secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akure, the State capital.

Former Senator Shehu Sani have also continued tweeting, an avenue through which he lends his voice to burning issues of socio-political discourse. Similarly the PDP’s twitter handle has not stopped tweeting. During the weekend, while saluting Nigerian fathers on Fathers’ Day praised them for their daily toils in a bid to provide for their homes despite the “excruciating APC economy.”

What remains to be seen, however, is how the Nigerian government hopes to attract investment to its nascent digital economy. Investors may look the way of markets without the threat of sudden regulatory disruptions. In other words, Twitter’s decision to shun the country and site its African headquarters in neighbouring Ghana would only be the beginning of Nigeria’s woes.

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Yinka Akanbi

Yinka is an aesthete and a cosmopolite.