Lai Mohammed leads Nigerian team to discuss with Twitter

Lai Mohammed leads Nigerian team to discuss with Twitter over suspension

By : vNkechi Onyedika-Ugoeze, Abuja

Date: 22 June 2021 12:41pm WAT

Nigeria's Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, react during an interview on Nigeria's suspension of Twitter, in Abuja, Nigeria, on June 9, 2021. - Nigeria's Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed told AFP Twitter had sought talks with the government, which last week suspended the platform's operations in the country, saying it was used for activities threatening the country's stability. The Twitter ban on June 4, 2021 has provoked outcry from the United Nations, foreign governments and rights groups who are concerned about repression of media freedoms. (Photo by Kola Sulaimon / AFP)

Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, speaks during an interview on Nigeria’s suspension of Twitter in Abuja, Nigeria, on June 9, 2021. (Photo by Kola Sulaimon / AFP)

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the composition of the Nigerian Government’s team to engage with Twitter over the recent suspension of the operations of the social media platform in the country.

The team which would be chaired by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed also comprises the Attorney General of the Federation and Honourable Minister of Justice, Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Works and Housing, Minister of State for Labour and Employment as well as other relevant government agencies.

Mohammed noted that following the indefinite suspension of its operations in Nigeria allegedly for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence, Twitter wrote to Buhari seeking to engage with the Federal Government over the suspension, with a view to charting a path forward.