The government of the United States of America has urged the Nigerian Government to immediately repeal its ban on Twitter operations in the country.
The US government said that the ban of the operations of the microblogging site amounted to an anti- free speech policy.
An administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, Samantha Power, revealed this in a statement on Wednesday.
She said that Twitter had over 40 million users in Nigeria, and that the Nigerian government’s directive should be reversed immediately.
She said: “There are nearly 40 million Twitter users in #Nigeria, and the country is home to Africa’s largest tech hub.
“This suspension is nothing more than state-sanctioned denial of free speech and should be reversed immediately.
“Nigeria’s constitution provides for freedom of expression. The Government’s recent
#Twitterban undermines Nigerians’ ability to exercise this fundamental freedom and sends a poor message to its citizens, investors and businesses.
“Banning social media and curbing every citizen’s ability to seek, receive, and impart information undermines fundamental freedoms.
“As President Biden has stated, our need for individual expression, open public conversation, and accountability has never been greater.
“The path to a more secure Nigeria lies in more, not less communication, alongside concerted efforts toward unity, peace, and prosperity.”
The US mission in Nigeria had earlier on, issued a statement via its Facebook page, pointing out that the ban was an encroachment on the people’s right to freedom of expression.
