Lai Mohammed, former minister of information and culture, says suspending Twitter, now known as X, in 2021 was one of the most difficult decisions he made while in office. He made this known in his new book, “Headlines & Soundbites: Media Moments That Defined An Administration”, launched in Abuja on Wednesday.
In a chapter titled “Silencing the bird: The story of Nigeria’s Twitter suspension”, Mohammed said the decision was tough due to its impact on Nigerians who depended on the platform for business and the negative optics regarding freedom of expression. However, he argued that “none of the reasons outweighed the threat to national security posed by a freewheeling and irresponsible use of social media platforms”.
Reacting to public backlash, Mohammed said condemnations were “fast and furious”, adding that the government had repeatedly warned social media companies against enabling fake news and hate speech. He also dismissed claims that Twitter was suspended because President Muhammadu Buhari’s tweet was deleted, noting that Buhari approved the suspension after being briefed. The ban was lifted on January 12, 2022.