An Abuja-based human rights lawyer, Pelumi Olajengbesi, says there is nothing to rejoice over on the lifting on suspension placed on micro-blogging site Twitter by the Federal Government.
According to the lawyer, Twitter is not just a social media platform but a money-making avenue for Nigerian youths who make a living through content creating and sharing on the platform.
The Buhari regime had suspended Twitter operations in Nigeria on June 4, 2021, after the micro-blogging platform deleted a controversial civil war post by the President. Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, had said the persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.
According to the NetBlocks Cost of Shutdown Tool, Nigeria’s economy lost N104.02m ($250,600) every hour to the ban on Twitter as of December 2021.
Olajengbesi, who is the Managing Partner of Law Corridor in Abuja, therefore said, The Federal Government should pay Nigerian youths and business owners who lost means of livelihood due to the seven-month suspension of Twitter in the country.
