Nigeria Twitter Ban: CSOs call for an end to the ban

Barely a few months after opening its Africa Offices in Ghana, Twitter has already navigated its first content regulation controversy. On 5 June, a tweet from Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari was deleted by Twitter, and, in reaction, the federal government banned use of the social media platform in the country. Civil society organisations have called for an end to the ban, but it appears that the Nigerian government is keen on regulating social media in the country. On 23 June, the ECOWAS court offered temporary reprieve by preventing the Nigerian government from prosecuting Twitter users pending the hearing and determination of a suit filed by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project and 176 Nigerian Twitter users.