BEVERLY HILLS, June 02, (THEWILL) – The Federal Government has accused Twitter of “double standards” for deleting President Muhammadu Buhari’s tweet from the microblogging platform.
THEWILL reports that Twitter deleted the President’s controversial tweet where he threatened to employ his Civil War experience to deal with those “bent on destroying” Nigeria through “insurrection.”
“Those of us in the fields for 30 months, who went through the war, will treat them in the language they understand”, he had said.
Twitter said the message (which many Nigerians had reported) violated its rules.
However, in his reaction to the action of the microblogging platform on Wednesday, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, accused Twitter of discrimination.
Mohammed, who addressed state house correspondents on Wednesday, accused the platform of turning a blind eye on the activities of IPOB, which Nigerian authorities declared a terrorist organisation.
He said Twitter ignores “hate” messages from the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) but was quick to enforce its rules on the President.
According to Mohammed, Twitter casually disregarded inciting posts by Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), and his associates.
He claimed Twitter disregarded Kalu’s comments encouraging the assassination of police officers, as well as the display of similar biases at the ENDSARS protest, which saw government and private property plundered and set ablaze, claiming it was a violation of Human Rights.
Mohammed, who wondered why the organisation now found President Buhari’s tweet offensive, said Twitter’s role is suspect and Nigeria will not be fooled.
He said: “Twitter may have its own rules, it’s not the universal rule. If Mr. President, anywhere in the world feels very bad and concern 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? Are we the ones guilty of double standards? 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.”
“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.”
Buhari had posted the tweet while warning those “misbehaving in certain parts of the country,” particularly in the South-East, where government facilities had been under attack.
