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  • Nigeria’s problem not religious, ethnicity – Lai Mohammed

    Nigeria’s problem not religious, ethnicity – Lai Mohammed

    For the umpteenth time, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has stressed that the challenges facing the country is neither ethnicity nor religion.

    The minister said some elements in the country were exacerbating ethnic and religious differences to tear the country apart for their selfish reasons.

    Mohammed spoke in Abuja on Saturday at the Book presentation and 75th birthday celebration of Dr Bamigboye Ogunbiyi, a re-known obstetrician and Gynaecologist.

    Daybreak reports that Ogunbiyi who hail from Ilofa in Kwara state is the husband to Justice Clara Ogunbiyi, a retired Supreme Court Justice from Borno.

    Unveiling the autobiography titled, “Ripples of Grace’’, the minister said the things that unite the country were more and significant than those things that the divisive elements were escalating for disunity.

    He said the foundation for national unity had been built a long time ago by the nation’s forefathers and what the people needed to do was to sustain it.

    Mohammed gave three personal experiences to buttress his position including his days and that of the celebrant at the Government College, Keffi which he described as “a great model for the unity of Nigeria’’.

    “From the book, we leant that the celebrant attended Federal Government College (FGC), Keffi and that is why I am not surprised he ended up marrying Justice Clara from Borno.

    “In Keffi, we were taught at a very young age that this country is one and the same and that religion, ethnicity and social status do not matter but rather one’s academic prowess,’’ he said.

    Mohammed who said Ogunbiyi was his senior in FGC, stressed that in his time, only the very best from the 13 Provinces in the North made it to the college and not by any other consideration.

    The minister noted that the school was a leveler where children of peasants mixed freely with the children of the rich, adding that Christian students fasted along with those of them who were Muslims during the Ramadan.

    He implored Nigerians to emulate and revive the ‘Keffi spirit de-emphasising ethnicity, religion and social status and co-exist as Nigerians.’’

    The minister also gave another instance when he used the premises of St Andrews Catholic Church, Oro, his hometown for Ramadan lectures for three consecutive years.

    “This is a shining example of religious harmony and peaceful co-existence that we know in Nigeria.

    “For three years, a Church making its premises available free of charge for the annual Ramadan lecture.

    “This is contrary to the acrimony and mutual suspicion that many religious leaders are promoting today.

    “The lesson from this is that the religious disharmony that is being propagated today by some religious leaders is avoidable, and that adherents of the two major religions do not have to be enemies,” he said.

    Mohammed also gave a similar account when a Church in the heart of Lagos had to shift its Sunday service forward to enable Muslim faithful celebrate Sallah when the date fell on a Sunday.

    “I have been living in GRA, Ikeja, Lagos, for almost 25 years and during annual Eid-el-Fitr and Eid-el-Kabir, we, the Muslims always have our open prayers at Arch Bishop Vining Memorial Church belonging to Anglican Communion.

    “There was a particular year, Eid-el-Kabir fell on a Sunday when the venue will also be used for the usual Christian service.

    “With this development, we all agreed that we should come very early to pray so as not to disrupt the church service.

    “To our surprise, the management of Vining Memorial Cathedral rescheduled their own Sunday service to noon after we would have left the place.

    “I have not seen better example of religious tolerance in Nigeria,’’ he said.

    Speaking in the same vein, Prof. Emeritus, Nimi Briggs from University of Port-Harcourt said in-spite of all the challenges facing the country, Nigeria was not a failed state and should not be allowed to be one.

    Briggs who is the Guest speaker at the event said: “Several Nations have had worse experiences and have returned to the path of rectitude.

    “We should be encouraged by their outcome because humans are remarkably good at meeting the challenges of their environment and Nigeria will meet and overcome its present predicaments.

    “What we are experiencing these days has inherited various behavioural adaptation that proved useful to previous generations’’.
    On his part, the Chairman of the occasion and former Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole described the celebrant as a bridge builder and an epitome of Nigeria unity.

    He said besides having the best time of his practice in Kaduna and Borno, Ogunbiyi established a top-rated hospital, Nakowa Specialist Hospital in Maiduguri where he married from.

    Other dignitaries who spoke glowingly of the celebrants were Borno Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum represented by his Deputy, Umar Kadafar, Serving Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Mary Odili and former Minister of FCT, Mohammed Abba-Gana also from Borno.

    In his speech, the celebrant said he was convinced that Nigeria would remain one indivisible nation where cultural, ethnic and religious diversity would be recognised, respected and harnessed.

    Ogunbiyi said cross-cultural marriage should be used as a tool of national unity and one of the powerful ways national diversity could be harnessed.

    “I remain a veritable example of this conviction having married a woman from Borno, a distance of more than 1,000km from my hometown, Iloffa, Kwara.”

    He noted that Borno where he had served for 40 years was not synonymous with Boko Haram insurgency.

    Ogunbiyi testified that the people of Borno “are good, hospitable and the state is open to investors both indigenous and foreign alike.’’

  • FG To Take Possession Of Returning Benin Bronzes – Lai Mohammed

    FG To Take Possession Of Returning Benin Bronzes – Lai Mohammed

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, on Saturday said the Federal Government will be responsible for taking possession of the 1,130 Benin bronzes to be returned by Germany.

    “The Federal Government is aware of the widely reported controversy on who will take possession of the Benin bronzes when they are returned from Germany,” Mr Mohammed said on Saturday at a press conference in Lagos.

    The return of the bronzes, looted by Britain from Benin-city in the 19th century, had recently generated some controversy in Edo State.

    While the Oba of Benin wants the artefacts returned to the Benin Royal Museum, Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki has said they will be kept in “a transformational museum to be built in Benin City.”

    Mr Mohammed noted that the Federal Government would take possession while respecting the culture where the art originated from.

    “Let me state clearly that, in line with international best practices and the operative conventions and laws, the return of the artefacts is being negotiated bilaterally between the national governments of Nigeria and Germany,” he said.

    “What we are saying in essence is that the Federal Government will take possession of these antiquities because it is its duty to do so, in line with extant laws.

    “But we have always exercised this right in cognizance of that culture that produced the art works.”

    Although he did not state where the artefacts will be eventually kept, he thanked Governor Obaseki and the Oba of Benin for their work in the repatriation of the bronzes.

    Mr Mohammed, who recently led a delegation to Berlin to discuss the modalities for the proposed return, said the agreement will be signed by December 2021 with repatriation to be concluded by August 2022.

    He added that the return of the artefacts will be unconditional.

    “We agreed to have a definite timeline for the repatriation of the artefacts because Nigeria is tired of an indefinite timeline,” he said.

    “Thereafter, it was resolved that the agreement on the repatriation should be signed latest by December this year and that the repatriation should be concluded by August 2022.

    “We made our Germany counterparts realise that Nigeria is averse to attaching preconditions to repatriating the Benin bronzes. We made it clear that these are our properties and it is not proper to give us conditions for releasing them.

    “We therefore agreed that the release will be unconditional, neither will it be staggered.

    “We have decided that the repatriation of the artefacts should not be the end of an era but rather the beginning of a new vista of stronger relations, pivoted by cultural diplomacy, between Nigeria and Germany.”

    Read his full statement on Saturday below:

    TEXT OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE BY THE HON. MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND CULTURE, ALHAJI LAI MOHAMMED, ON THE EFFORTS BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO REPATRIATE LOOTED/SMUGGLED ARTEFACTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD….IN LAGOS ON SATURDAY JULY 17TH 2021

    Good morning gentlemen and thank you for once again honoring our invitation. We have organized this press conference to update Nigerians on the efforts being made by the Federal Government to repatriate looted and smuggled Nigerian artefacts from around the world. We also believe that you, as critical stakeholders, must be carried along in these efforts.

    1. Recall, gentlemen, that on Nov. 28th 2019, I announced, at a press conference here in Lagos, the launch of the Campaign For The Return and Restitution of Nigeria’s Looted/Smuggled Artifacts from around the world. I said that with the launch, we are putting on notice all those who are holding on to Nigeria’s cultural property anywhere in the world that we are coming for them, using all legal and diplomatic instruments available. Less than two years after that announcement, I can report back to Nigerians that our efforts at repatriating Nigeria’s looted artefacts are achieving positive results. The work ahead remains tough and daunting, but we will not relent until we have repatriated all our stolen and smuggled antiquities. These artefacts are so cherished all over the world and we realize that if they are returned to Nigeria and properly exhibited within and outside the country under our control, they stand to increase the influx of tourists to our nation and earn us good money. Of course, these timeless and priceless pieces of work are an important part of our past, our history, our heritage resource, and allowing them to sit in the museums of other nations robs us of our history.
    2. Gentlemen, even though not everyone in possession of these artefacts is willing to return them, we remain undeterred as we have deployed all legal and diplomatic means and we have been recording
      successes in our quest for repatriation. Here are some of the successes we have recorded since that press conference in 2019:

    – In October 2020, The Netherlands returned a highly-valued 600-year-old Ife Terracotta.

    – In March 2021, the University of Aberdeen in Scotland agreed to return a Benin Bronze from its collections. We shall take possession of this in October this year.

    – In April 2021, we received a bronze piece from Mexico.

    – The University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom has also agreed to return a disputed Benin artefact. We will soon commence the procedure for the repatriation of this highly-valued piece.

    – We have also secured a date in October 2021 for the repatriation of antiquities from the Metropolitan Museum in New York. These antiquities consist of two important Benin Bronzes and an exquisite
    Ife Bronze head. We are currently before the Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to it Countries of Origin or its Restitution in case of Illicit Appropriation (ICPRCP) in Paris, where we have instituted a claim against a Belgian who wanted to auction an Ife Bronze head valued at $5 million, at least. This Ife Bronze antiquity has been seized by the London Metropolitan Police, pending the decision on who the true owner is. Of course, we all know that the true owner is Nigeria.

    REPATRIATION OF LOOTED ARTEFACTS FROM GERMANY

    1. The most remarkable progress in our quest to repatriate our looted artefacts has been recorded in Germany, which is currently working with us for the repatriation of 1,130 Benin Bronzes to Nigeria. As you are aware, I recently led a high-level Nigerian delegation to Berlin, Germany, to iron out the modalities for the repatriation. During the trip, our delegation met with Prof. Monika Grutters, the German Minister of State for Culture, who has
      responsibility for antiquities; the German Foreign Minister, Mr. Heiko Maas, the Secretary of State in the German President’s office, Mr. Stephen Steinlein, and Harmann Parzinger, President of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, which is the centre of the German culture establishment, and his team, I also met with the Directors of at least 20 major museums. The negotiations were tough but fruitful. We have agreed that there is no going back on the issue of returning the Benin Bronzes.
    2. At the meetings in Germany, I insisted, and it was resolved that provenance research on the Benin Bronzes cannot and must not delay their return, since the origin of Benin objects is not a subject of dispute as such objects are only associated with the Benin Kingdom. On the German authorities’ proposal to return a ‘substantial part’ of the Benin Bronzes. I have asserted the stand of the Nigerian government by
      demanding full and unconditional release of the artefacts. Concerning recording the artefacts in 3D formats for posterity and academic sake under the ‘digitalbenin’ project, of which we are a part. I have told the Germans that this work of digitalizing the Benin Bronzes must not delay the return of the artefacts and that issues related to copyrights ownership and other rights over the digitalized objects will be discussed soon.
    3. We agreed to have a definitive timeline for the repatriation of the artefacts because Nigeria is tired of an indefinite timeline. Therefore, we resolved that the agreement on the repatriation should be signed in December 2021 and the repatriation should be concluded by August 2022. I told the Germans that Nigeria is averse to attaching pre-conditions to repatriating the Benin Bronzes. These are our properties, do not give us conditions for releasing them. We therefore agreed that the release will be unconditional, neither will it be staggered.
    4. It must be noted, however, that the meetings in Germany were not only about repatriating these objects. We have decided that the repatriation of the artefacts should not be the end of an era but the beginning of a new vista of stronger relations, pivoted by cultural diplomacy, between Nigeria and Germany. In this regard, there are other benefits accruing to Nigeria from the ongoing talks. There will be archaeological training for Nigerians. The Nigerian side and the German side agreed to Nigeria’s proposal to use the repatriated artefacts and other works of art to inspire Nigeria’s Creative Industry towards realizing its high potential. For this and
      other purposes, it was agreed that the Germans will facilitate the establishment of an academy in Nigeria.

    CONTROVERSY OVER THE POSSESSION OF THE RETURNED ARTEFACTS

    1. Gentlemen, the Federal Government is aware of the widely-reported controversy on who will take possession of the Benin Bronzes when they are returned from Germany. Let me state clearly here that, in line with international best practice and the operative Conventions and laws, the return of the artefacts is being negotiated bilaterally between the national governments of Nigeria and Germany. Nigeria is the entity recognized by international law as the authority in control of antiquities originating from Nigeria. The relevant international Conventions treat heritage properties as properties belonging to the nation and not to individuals or subnational groups. For example, the 1970 UNESCO Convention, in its Article 1, defines cultural property as property specifically designated by that nation. This allows individual nations to determine what it regards as its cultural property. Nevertheless, the Nigerian state – through the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture and the National Commission for Museums and Monuments – has in working assiduously over the past years to repatriate our looted artefacts carried along our important
      traditional institutions and state governments
    2. What I am saying in essence is that the Federal government will take possession of these antiquities, because it is its duty to do so, in line with the extant laws. But we have always exercised this right in cognizance of that culture that produced the art works. That is why the Ministry of Information and Culture and the National Commission for Museums and Monuments have always involved both the Edo State government and the Royal Benin Palace in discussions and negotiations that have now resulted in the impending return of these antiquities. Please note that we are not just involved in the repatriation of Benin artefacts. We are also working on repatriating Ife Bronzes and Terracotta, Nok Terracotta, Owo Terracotta, the arts of the Benue River Valley, the Igbo Ukwu, the arts of Bida, the arts of Igala, Jukun etc. Recall, gentlemen, our efforts over the Igbo statues that were auctioned at Christie’s in Year 2020, and the fact that we took the British and Belgian authorities to ICPRCP in 2019 over an Ife object.
    3. Finally, I want to most sincerely commend the Government of Germany for taking the lead in the global efforts to repatriate all artefacts that were looted from Nigeria and indeed from the African continent. As I said during the meetings in Berlin, we see Germany as a leader in the efforts to take practical steps to repatriate our stolen artefacts, and we hope Germany will sustain that lead. I also want to thank Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, who was with us all through the tough negotiations in Berlin, and His Royal Majesty the Oba of Benin, who sent the Benin Crown Prince, His Royal Highness Ezelekhae Ewuare, to be a part of the Nigerian delegation to Berlin. We thank all Nigerians, especially the media, for their support for our efforts to repatriate all our looted artefacts.
    4. Gentlemen, I thank you for listening. I will now take your questions.
  • We Have Capacity For Electronic Transmission In Remote Areas – INEC

    We Have Capacity For Electronic Transmission In Remote Areas – INEC

    The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Saturday suggested it has the capacity to transmit election results electronically from remote areas across the country.

    Lawmakers in both chambers of the National Assembly had been at loggerheads over electronic transmission of results earlier in the week.

    The House was thrown into disarray on Thursday as members debated section 52(2) of the electoral amendment act bill, which deals with electronic transmission.

    Also on Thursday, APC Senators forced through a version of the bill at the Senate that constrained INEC to seek permission from the Nigerian Communications Commission and the National Assembly before employing electronic voting in any part of the country.

    According to the lawmakers opposed to sacrosanct electronic transmission of results, some parts of the country do not have the required network coverage.

    An Executive Commissioner at the Nigerian Communications Commission, Adeleke Adewolu, told lawmakers at the House of Representatives on Friday that only 50 percent of the country has the 3G coverage required for transmission.

    But speaking on Channels Television breakfast show on Saturday, INEC’s National Chairman and Commissioner for Information and Voter Education, Mr Festus Okoye said the Commission’s position was clear.

    “We have uploaded results from very remote areas, even from areas where you have to use human carriers to access,” he said.

    “So, we have made our own position very clear, that we have the capacity and we have the will to deepen the use of technology in the electoral process.

    “But our powers are given by the constitution and the law, and we will continue to remain within the ambit and confines of the power granted to the commission by the constitution and the law.”

  • We Spend N60bn To Repair Pipelines Annually — Lai Mohammed

    We Spend N60bn To Repair Pipelines Annually — Lai Mohammed

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said the government spends N60bn annually to repair vandalized pipelines.

    Speaking on Monday in Abuja at a town hall meeting on protecting oil and gas infrastructure, he said Nigeria lost an average of 200,000 barrels per day to pipelines’ destruction.

    He said statistics had shown that between January 2019 and September 2020, 1,161 pipeline points were vandalized across the nation.

    Also speaking, the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, said the destruction of pipelines in the Niger Delta had made a lot of oil investors leave the region to other countries for their oil business investments.

    Akpabio said perpetrators should be punished and tried openly to serve as a deterrent to others.

    The Minister of Environment, Mohammed Mahmood Abubakar, said Nigeria lost 43 per cent of its revenues to oil theft, calling for the prosecution of all pipeline vandals.

    Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mele Kyari, said from January to May 2021, the NNPC pipeline segments had suffered 203 breaks with system 2B having 80 pipeline breaks and system 2E, 114 breaks.

    He said all these had all led to a total cumulative loss of 39 million litres which amounted to N5.973bn.

  • We know Nnamdi Kanu’s collaborators, they will all face the law – FG

    We know Nnamdi Kanu’s collaborators, they will all face the law – FG

    The Federal Government of Nigeria has said that it knows the collaborators of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu.

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, disclosed this on Thursday at a press conference in Abuja while speaking on the re-arrest of the IPOB leader.

    According to Mohammed, Kanu’s collaborators will all face the full wrath of the law.

    Recall Daybreak reported on Tuesday that the Federal High Court in Abuja had ordered that Kanu be remanded in a Department of State Service (DSS) facility, pending the determination of his trial.

    But Mohammed in a press conference Thursday morning said, “We can tell you that the forensic investigation carried out so far has revealed a treasure trove of information on the proscribed IPOB leader and his collaborators.

    “While the investigation continues, we assure you that none of the collaborators, irrespective of their standing in the society, will be spared.

    “They will all face the full wrath of the law for their activities that challenge our nation’s sovereignty and threaten its unity.

    “No one, no matter how highly placed, is bigger than the country,” he added.

  • FG makes U-turn, denies sponsoring bills to regulate social media

    FG makes U-turn, denies sponsoring bills to regulate social media

    The Federal Government on Friday denied sponsoring bills purportedly meant to gag the press and regulate social media.

    Recall that the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, had urged the House of Representatives to include regulation of Twitter in the National Broadcasting Commission Act.

    The Minister made the call at the public hearing on a bill to amend the NBC Act organized by the House Committee on Information.

    “I will want to add that specifically, internet broadcasting and all online media should be included in this because we have a responsibility to monitor content— including Twitter,” he said.

    However, in an interview with newsmen in Lagos, Mohammed said the bills concerning the Nigerian Press Council and the National Broadcasting Commission were private member bills sponsored by a lawmaker in the National Assembly.

    “First, let me say how disappointed I am that those who have been berating me on these bills have been doing so on a false premise that the Federal Government had sponsored bills to stifle the press.

    ”This is a classic case of misinformation because the Federal Government did not sponsor any bill to gag the press.

    “It baffles me that those who rushed to the media to slam the government didn’t even try to verify the facts,’’ he said

    The minister further stated that the National Assembly member who sponsored the bills had done nothing wrong. He said the legislator was only doing what he was elected to do.

    “I insist that the bills were not sponsored by the Federal Government.

    “I was invited, as the Minister of Information and Culture, to make my contributions, just like many other stakeholders at the public hearing.

    “It was an opportunity for stakeholders to make their input into the bills.

    ”I attended and made my contributions,’’ he added.

  • Twitter’s founder, Dorsey, liable for #EndSARS losses – FG

    Twitter’s founder, Dorsey, liable for #EndSARS losses – FG

    The Federal Government says Twitter and its founder, Jack Dorsey, are vicariously liable for the losses the country suffered during the EndSARS protest.

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, stated this on Tuesday when he featured on “Politics Nationwide,’’ a Radio Nigeria call-in programme monitored by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

    Mohammed alleged that Dorsey raised funds through Bitcoins to sponsor the EndSARS protest while his platform, Twitter, was used to fuel the crisis.

    He said when he made the allegations earlier, Nigerians did not take him seriously until an online media outfit carried out an investigation and fact-checking.

    The minister said the online publication confirmed that Dorsey retweeted some of the posts by some of the coalitions supporting the EndSARS protest.

    He said it was also confirmed that the Twitter founder launched fundraising asking people to donate via Bitcoins.

    The minister said Dorsey further launched Emoji to make the EndSARS protest visible on the microblogging site.

    He said Dorsey also retweeted the tweets of some foreign and local supporters of EndSARS.

    “If you ask people to donate money via bitcoins for EndSARS protesters then you are vicariously liable for whatever is the outcome of the protest.

    “We have forgotten that EndSARS led to the loss of lives, including 37 policemen, six soldiers, 57 civilians while property worth billions of naira were destroyed.

    “164 police vehicles and 134 police stations were razed to the ground, 265 private corporate organisation were looted while 243 public property were looted.

    “81 warehouses were looted while over 200 brand new buses bought by Lagos State Government were burnt to ashes,’’ he said.

    The minister said it was unfair to conclude that the operation of Twitter was suspended indefinitely because it deleted President Muhammadu Buhari’s message.

    He said the government was unambiguous that the action was taken because the platform was being used to promote the views of those who wanted to destabilise the country.

    Mohammed added that Twitter consistently offered its platform to promote agendas that were inimical to the corporate existence of Nigeria.

    “Twitter has become a platform of choice for a particular separatist promoter.

    “The promoter consistently used the platform to direct his loyalists to kill Nigerian soldiers and policemen, run-down INEC offices and destroy all symbols of Nigeria’s sovereignty.

    “Every attempt to persuade Twitter to deny its platform to this separatist leader was not taken seriously,’’ he said.

    The minister said the Federal Government has no apology to offer to those unhappy over the suspension of Twitter’s operations in the country.

    He said a country must exist in peace before people could exercise freedom of speech and fight for a source of livelihood.

  • Twitter Has Reached Out To Us For Negotiation – Lai Mohammed

    Twitter Has Reached Out To Us For Negotiation – Lai Mohammed

    The Federal Government says the management of tech giant, Twitter, has reached out for dialogue.

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed said this on Wednesday while addressing State House correspondents after the Federal Executive Council.

    He declared that the ban has so far been very effective following reports of Twitter’s huge financial losses running into billions.

    The Information Minister maintains that Twitter has been a platform of choice for separatists to thrive and would be disallowed from operating until it is duely registered, licensed, and operates within regulations.

    When the Minister was asked about the law under which Nigerians who violate the Twitter ban would be prosecuted, Lai refrained from answering and asked that the Attorney General of the Federation provide answers.

    Speaking concerning the discussion at the FEC meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari, Mohammed insisted on the ban and asked politicians to rise beyond various divisions and queue behind the country’s decision to ban the microblogging site.

    – Tax Payment and Registration –

    Minister Lai Mohammed also spoke concerning the payment of tax by tech giants in the country.

    He explained that most of the OTT and social media platforms operating in Nigeria do not have offices either do they pay taxes for the billions earned.

    Henceforth, the Federal government has resolved to ensure other social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram be registered in the country and adverts have been published to this effect.

    The information minister, despite criticism by Human Rights groups, insists that freedom of speech has not been stifled as a result of the ban.

    He maintained that other social media platforms are still available for use.

  • Reps Summon Lai Mohammed Over Twitter Ban

    Reps Summon Lai Mohammed Over Twitter Ban

    The House of Representatives has summoned the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, over the suspension of Twitter operations in Nigeria.

    Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, announced this at the resumption of plenary on Tuesday.

    He said the action of the Federal Government has been generating reactions across the country.

    He said since the ban, he has been inundated with requests for intervention.

    “The House of Representatives recognises that Twitter, like other social media networks, is an important tool for communication and commerce in Nigeria, particularly amongst the younger generation who have used these networks for enterprise and innovation with great success.

    “The House also recognises that as social media has been a tool for good, it can also be a tool for bad actors. As such, the government has a legitimate interest in ensuring that these platforms are not used to commit vile actions against individuals and the State.

    “The proper role of the legislature in circumstances like this is first to peel back the layers of the decision-making process to unravel the issues until we develop an understanding of the why and the how of executive decisions.

    “Following that, the legislature must make sure that regulatory and enforcement actions by the government are in accordance with the laws of the land, that due process of law has been followed to the latter and that the outcomes of regulatory decisions do not result in adverse consequences for the country and all our people.”

    House to listen to agitations of  Nigerians

    The Speaker said while the House will listen to the agitation of the people, it will also “hear from the government so that from the abundance of information, we reach the level of awareness that allows us to discharge our role dispassionately.”

    “It is in service of our obligations under the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and our moral duty to the Nigerian people, that the leadership of the House has decided to mandate the House Committees on Communication, Justice, Information and Culture, and National Security and Intelligence to immediately commence an investigation to determine:

    “a. The circumstances of the decision by the Federal Government of Nigeria to suspend the operations of Twitter in Nigeria;
    b. The legal authority for the ban on the operations of Twitter in Nigeria.”

    According to him, the committees are additionally mandated to invite Mohammed to brief the House of Representatives on the objectives, intent, and duration of the suspension on the operations of Twitter in Nigeria, and to report to the House within ten (10) days.

    He said the report of the committees will guide further action by the House of Representatives on the matter.

  • Twitter’s Mission In Nigeria Is Suspicious, Says Lai Mohammed

    Twitter’s Mission In Nigeria Is Suspicious, Says Lai Mohammed

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed has taken a swipe at the US media giant, Twitter, saying its mission in Nigeria is suspicious.

    Mohammed’s comments came after Twitter deleted President Muhammadu Buhari’s tweet where he issued a threat to trouble makers in the country while making reference to Nigeria’s civil war.

    While defending its action, the tech company said the President’s tweet violated its rules.

    But briefing State House reporters at the Presidential Villa on Wednesday in Abuja, the Minister accused Twitter of ignoring inciting tweets by the leader of Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, and others, adding that Nigeria would not be fooled.

    “We have a country to rule and we will do so to the best of our ability. Twitter’s mission in Nigeria is very suspect, they have an agenda,” he said.

    “The mission of Twitter in Nigeria is very suspicious. Has Twitter deleted the violent tweets that Nnamdi Kanu has been sending? Has it? The same Twitter during the ENDSARS protests that were funding ENDSARS protesters, it was the first to close the account of the former president of the US, Trump.

    “And you see when people were burning police stations and killing policemen in Nigeria during ENDSARS, for Twitter, it was about the right to protest. But when a similar thing happened on the Capitol, it became insurrection.”

    He recalled the #EndSARS protest during which government and private property were either looted or destroyed in October last year, noting that the company also displayed the same bias during the period.

    The minister also asked what rule of Twitter President Buhari violated to warrant his tweet to be deleted, wondering why previous tweets on #EndSARS protests were taken out.

    Mohammed added, “Twitter may have its own rules, it’s not the universal rule. If Mr. President, anywhere in the world feels very bad and concern about a situation, he is free to express such views. Now, we should stop comparing apples with oranges.

    “If an organisation is proscribed, it is different from any other which is not proscribed. Two,  any organisation that gives directives to its members, to attack police stations, to kill policemen, to attack correctional centers, to kill warders, and you are now saying that Mr. President does not have the right to express his dismay and anger about that?

    “We are the ones guilty of double standards. I don’t see anywhere in the world where an organisation, a person will stay somewhere outside Nigeria and will direct his members to attack the symbols of authority, the police, the military, especially when that organisation has been proscribed.  By whatever name, you can’t justify giving orders to kill policemen or to kill anybody you do not agree with.”

    President Buhari had during a meeting with the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, issued a stern warning to those plotting to destroy Nigeria, saying they will soon receive the shock of their lives.

    He also condemned the series of attacks on INEC facilities, stressing that the Federal Government has given the perpetrators enough time.

    “I receive daily security reports on the attacks, and it is very clear that those behind them want this administration to fail,” President Buhari said.