…Accuses Twitter of Double Standards
Twitter has deleted a tweet on the ‘Nigerian Civil War’ posted on the micro-blogging platform by President Muhammadu Buhari for allegedly violating its rules.
Buhari had on Tuesday took to his official Twitter handle to caution insurrectionists responsible for the destruction of public institutions recently reported in the South-East.
Buhari who was reacting to the destruction of 42 Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) buildings across Nigeria, primarily in the Southeast, threatened to “shock” those responsible for the arson.
“Many of those misbehaving today are too young to be aware of the destruction and loss of lives that occurred during the Nigerian Civil War.
“Those of us in the fields for 30 months, who went through the war, will treat them in the language they understand,” Buhari had tweeted on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the president’s reaction generated widespread condemnation as many Nigerians slammed him. Also, some considered the statement as the one disparaging the Igbo.
The New Diplomat gathered that some Nigerian twitter users filed a complain to Twitter on the President’s tweet.
The Nigerian Twitter Community also created a hashtag #TwitterSuspendBuharisAccount aimed at calling out to the micro-blogging company to delete Buhari’s account.
However, Twitter only responded by deleting the said tweet.
Checks by The New Diplomat indicated that the Buhari’s tweet has been deleted as Twitter claimed it violated its rules.
“This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules,” Twitter wrote on the threads after removing the tweet from the President’s account.
But the federal government has harshly criticised Twitter for allegedly playing double standards on issues regarding Nigeria.
Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, while reacting to the action of Twitter described it as an unfair decision.
According to the Minister, Twitter had ignored the tweets of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu which allegedly incited violence, as well as the various alleged offensive tweets made during the #ENDSARS protest which led to the destruction of government and private properties.
In his words: “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 centres, 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,” he said.
