Geoffrey Onyeama, Minister of Foreign Affairs denies imposing any conditions on Twitter for its activities to be reinstated in the country
Geoffrey Onyeama, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, has refuted claims that he outlined requirements that Twitter must achieve before its interim ban in Nigeria may be reinstated.
“Twitter’s activities in Nigeria would be restored only if the platform can be utilized responsibly,” the Minister was reported as saying during his meeting.
Many took his remark to suggest that Twitter must fulfil this requirement before resuming operations in Nigeria. The Minister’s remark was taken out of context, according to a statement made by the ministry’s spokesperson, Ferdinand Nwonye.
“This statement by the Honourable Minister has been quoted out of context.
Contrary to the publications, the Honourable Minister was speaking generally about the responsibilities that go with freedom of speech, stating that platforms that have the power to instantly disseminate information among billions of people have the added responsibility to exercise that power responsibly.
The Ministry wishes to state categorically that the Honourable Minister did not give any conditions regarding lifting the Twitter suspension” Nwonye said