A legal rights group has sued Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari to force his government to publish an agreement that allows Twitter last month after one . In June 2021, Nigeria suspended Twitter after the company deleted a tweet by President Buhari threatening to punish local dissidents. At that time, Twitter by the actions of the country, noting that it considers the open Internet “an essential human right in modern society.”
On January 13, Nigeria lifted the ban after the company agreed, among other conditions, to open a local office and work with the government to jointly develop a code of conduct. On Sunday, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) with the country’s High Court to force President Buhari and Information Minister Lai Mohammed to publish a copy of that agreement.
“The announcement of the agreement with Twitter will promote transparency, accountability and help mitigate threats to Nigerians’ rights online, as well as any interference with privacy and freedom of expression online,” SERAP said. “Any agreement with social media companies must meet the constitutional requirements of legitimacy, necessity, proportionality, and legitimacy.”
SERAP said it attempted to obtain a copy of the agreement through a freedom of information request. It sued in part because the government responded “unsatisfactorily” to that request. Minister Mohammed allegedly told the group details of the deal was “in public space”, and did not forward a copy of its terms.
We have reached out to Twitter for comment.
As , SERAP is among several groups that have gone to court to fight Nigeria’s Twitter ban. The Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States is expected to decide whether to rule on that case this week.
All products recommended by Engadget are handpicked by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
