ECOWAS court declares Twitter ban illegal

By : Bertram Nwannekanma

Date: 15 July 2022 4:31am WAT

(FILES) This file photo taken on October 12, 2021, shows the logo of US social network Twitter on a smartphone screen in Moscow. - Stock markets were relatively subdued on April 4, 2022, while oil prices rose as Western nations eyed more sanctions on Russia, but Twitter stood out as its shares soared after Elon Musk purchased a major stake in the social network. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP)

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court sitting in Abuja has declared as “unlawful the suspension of Twitter by the government of President Muhammadu Buhari.”

The order followed a suit by Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and 176 other Nigerians. In the judgment, yesterday, the court held that it had jurisdiction to hear the case, and was admissible.

The court maintained that suspending Twitter was unlawful and inconsistent with Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, both of which Nigeria is a state party.