The Federal Government on Wednesday hinted that it may soon lift the suspension imposed on Twitter.
This follows the agreement reached between both parties to shift ground on a number of the contending issues.
Twitter’s activities in Nigeria has been under suspension for over two months, a development that has prompted diverse reactions from cross-sections of Nigerians.
The government had on June 5, 2021, officially put an indefinite ban on Twitter, restricting it from operating in Nigeria after the social media platform deleted tweets made by the President Muhammadu Buhari warned the Indigenous People of Biafra that they will be treated in the language they understand.
The government had claimed that the deletion of the President’s tweets was based on “a litany of problems with the social media platform in Nigeria, where misinformation and fake news spread through it have had real-world violent consequences”.
Minister of Information and Culture, Lal Mohammed, while responding to questions to give an update on the face-off, told State House Correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the presidential villa, Abuja, that progress has been made in resolving the impasse following series of meetings.
Mohammed gave more details of the conditions given to the platform, saying that most of them have been accepted.
Mohammed said the areas still pending such as Twitter setting up an office and having a Twitter staff of management cadre that will serve as the country representative, are still being discussed.
He revealed that in the area of a Nigerian office, even though Twitter has agreed to the condition, it is, however, maintaining that the earliest it can establish it is 2022.
The minister expressed confidence that everything will be ironed out with Twitter within a few days or weeks, noting the anxiety that has been shown by Nigerians.
He said the federal government’s committee negotiating with Twitter will meet on the agreement soon to make recommendations.
