Breaking: Government to prosecute Twitter ban violators – Malami

Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN has directed for the immediate prosecution of offenders of the Federal Government ban on Twitter operations in Nigeria.

Malami directed the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation (DPPF) at the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, to swing into action and commence in earnest the process of prosecution of violators of the Federal Government De-activation of opetations of Twitter in Nigeria.

In a press statement signed by Dr. Umar Jibrilu Gwandu
(Special Assistant on Media and Public Relations, Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice), Malami directed the DPPF to liase with the Ministry of Communication and Digital Economy, National Communication Communication (NCC) and other relevant government agencies to ensure the speedy prosecution of offenders without any further delay.

The AGF’s order is to enforce the government’s decision to clamp down on those bypassing the Twitter ban.

The ban has attracted global and local condemnation as an attack on Nigerians’ civic rights, including rights to freedom of expression.

On Friday, the Nigerian government through the information minister, Lai Mohammed, had announced an “indefinite suspension” of Twitter operation in the country.

This came two days after Twitter took down a controversial tweet by President Muhammadu Buhari which the microblogging site viewed as a veiled threat of violence against the Igbo ethnic group.