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  • #TwitterBan: Indian firm officially launches microblogging app in Nigeria

    #TwitterBan: Indian firm officially launches microblogging app in Nigeria

    An Indian firm has taken advantage of the fallout between the federal government and popular United States baseball microblogging site, Twitter to establish its own microblogging and social networking app, Koo.

    The app was launched on Tuesday in Nigeria.

    Mr Aprameya Radhakrishna, Co-Founder of Koo, made this known during a virtual press briefing organised to announce the launch of the App in Nigeria.

    Radhakrishna said that the platform was aimed at enabling Nigerians to express themselves in the digital space.

    “We are delighted to have an opportunity to launch in Nigeria because of its rich cultural diversity,” he said.

    According to Radhakrishna, Koo will soon be available in multiple local languages, including Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba and Pidgin English.

    He said although Nigeria was an English-speaking country, the Koo felt it was important for the people to be able to communicate in their local language in the digital space which will further enrich the local culture of Nigeria.

    Radhakrishna said that Koo’s primary goal was freedom of expression, describing it as a platform that supports and promotes language diversity, whilst offering users a safe space for respectful and meaningful conversations.

    “Koo was launched in 2020 and it allows users to share personal updates and opinions across numerous topics of interest in 400 characters.

    “The microblogging app has since amassed a user base of over seven million people since its launch, with seven Indian languages as well as English currently available on the platform in India.

    “This has enabled more non-English-speaking Indians to participate in the online dialogue, “he said.

    He said: “When we launched Koo, our aim was to give users a platform where opinions can be expressed freely irrespective of the languages one knows.

    Radhakrishna said the organization wanted users to be able to interact in the language of their choice with some of the most incisive minds on the internet, while keeping engagement respectful and harmonious.

    “Users can engage in conversations across multiple topics using some of our varied features, including hashtags, a rich 400-character limit, dedicated buttons to share posts across other social media platforms, among several others.

    Radhakrishna noted that while working with Nigerian people, Koo has been able to appreciate the historical and cultural nuances of the country.

    “We would encourage a positive attitude on the platform, making us partners in progress.

    “A few months ago, Koo announced the magic ‘Talk-to-Type’ feature. This feature enables people who want to share their thoughts on the platform to do so easily without having to type.

    “They can speak out loud and the words will show up ‘magically’ on the screen all at the click of a button and without using a keyboard.

    “This feature is available in all the languages that Koo offers, apart from English,” Radhakrishna said .

  • Nigerian Twitter is filed with angry people-Toke Makinwa

    Nigerian Twitter is filed with angry people-Toke Makinwa

    Toke Makinwa, a Nigerian media personality, has averred that Nigerian twitter is filled with angry people.

    In the latest episode of ‘Toke Moments’, the OAP said Nigerian Twitter is a very angry place to be.

    According to her:”Nigerian twitter is a very angry place in my opinion.It’s like everyone is impatient, even the way they are reading your tweets already, they are just waiting for you to just miss.There is nobody that they cannot drag”.

    TheNewsGuru recalls that on June 4, the federal government suspended the operations of Twitter in Nigeria, accusing the microblogging site of undermining Nigeria’s existence.

    The suspension came days after a post by President Muhammadu Buhari on the 1967 civil war was deleted by Twitter — even though the government claims that both events are not related.

    The ban of Twitter, which has about 40 million users in Nigeria, appears to be the beginning of what the government had planned to do over the years — the regulation of social media. In fact, the federal government has since asked the house of representatives to enact a law to regulate social and online media in Nigeria.

    Sharing his opinion about the Twitter ban, Nigerian rapper Ruggedman in an interview advised the government to stop acting based on emotions and put the people first.

    “The government needs to stop acting based on emotions or sentiments. (A formerUSA President) Donald Trump had his tweets deleted and was even blocked on Facebook for two years. Yet, those social media platforms were not suspended, though their headquarters are in that country. The Nigerian government needs to put the people first but that did not happen in this case.”

  • Twitter shuts two largest U.S. offices indefinitely

    Twitter shuts two largest U.S. offices indefinitely

    Twitter has closed its offices in New York and San Francisco following an outbreak of the Delta variant in the US, which has led to a surge in coronavirus cases.

    Its decision to shut the doors of its two largest offices came just two weeks after they reopened, and alongside a pause in reopenings of other Twitter office locations.

    “Twitter has made the decision to close our opened offices in New York and San Francisco as well as pause future office reopenings, effective immediately. We’re continuing to closely monitor local conditions and make necessary changes that prioritise the health and safety of our Tweeps,” a company spokesperson said.

    Fellow tech companies Google and Apple have also delayed a return to office work, with employees largely remaining working from home until October this year.

    A Twitter spokesman told the San Francisco Chronicle that employees who had returned to the office previously were requires to have a vaccinated, while they were also given the option to remain working remotely if they did not want to come in.

    However, the emergence of the Delta variant, which is now the dominant strain in the US, and a change in guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about mask-wearing indoors, prompted the company to announce it was postponing its office reopening.

    Last year, Twitter’s HR chief Jennifer Christie suggested the company would not go back to pre-pandemic working conditions.

    “People who were reticent to work remotely will find that they really thrive that way,,” the Daily Mail reported her saying. “Managers who didn’t think they could manage teams that were remote will have a different perspective. I do think we won’t go back.”

     

  • We’ve not stopped Nigerians from using Twitter- FG

    We’ve not stopped Nigerians from using Twitter- FG

    The Federal Government has told a Federal High Court in Lagos that it has not stopped Nigerians from using social media platform, Twitter, adding that many Nigerians are still using it every day.

    The Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, and the Federal Government said this in a counter-affidavit they deposed to in response to an originating motion filed by human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong.

    TheNewsGuru recalls that government had on June 4, 2021, suspended Twitter barely two days after the social media platform deleted a tweet by the President, Muhammadu Buhari.

    Amazingly, many Nigerians have bypassed the Twitter suspension by using Virtual Private Network.

    Malami in a statement threatened to prosecute Nigerians still using the platform while the National Broadcasting Commission ordered all radio and television stations to stop using Twitter or picking content from the platform.

    Rights lawyer, Effiong, subsequently sued the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, Malami, and the Federal Government for suspending the social media platform.

    In the fundamental human rights suit marked FHC/L/CS/542/2021, Effiong is seeking nine reliefs, including an order of perpetual injunction restraining the respondents from further suspending, deactivating or banning the operation and accessibility of Twitter or any other social media service in Nigeria because the act was in violation of his rights.

    Effiong asked the court to declare as illegal the threat of criminal prosecution by Malami and Lai Mohammed against Nigerians who ‘violate’ the suspension or ban of Twitter, despite the absence of any written law.

    In an affidavit deposed to by Mr Ilop Lawrence on behalf of the Federal Government and the AGF, it was stated that the suspension of Twitter was not an abuse of human rights because Nigerians were still using Twitter despite the suspension.

    It read in part, “The applicant (Effiong) and the class he seeks to represent can still operate those Twitter accounts from anywhere in the world and even from Nigeria. Nigerians are still tweeting, even at this moment as the ban on Twitter is not aimed at intimidating Nigerians or an infringement on the rights of Nigerians to express their opinion.

    “The respondents (Federal Government and AGF) have never stopped the applicant (Effiong) and the class of persons he seeks to represent from voicing their opinions to access government information and offer criticism where necessary.”

    The government told the court that Nigerians are still free to use other platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook, Tiktok and others.

    The Federal Government also denied knowledge of Twitter deleting Buhari’s tweet on the Biafra civil which offended many Nigerians.

    It said Twitter had made its platform accessible to elements like Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra; and had supported the #EndSARS protests of October 2020 which was later hijacked by hoodlums.

    The government further stated that Nigerians should direct their irritation at Twitter and not the government because Twitter would not have been suspended if it complied with Nigeria’s laws.

    It further told the court that the Twitter suspension would be lifted once the platform registers with the NBC and the Corporate Affairs Commission.

     

  • JUST IN: Nnamdi Kanu’s Principal Secretary suspended from Twitter

    JUST IN: Nnamdi Kanu’s Principal Secretary suspended from Twitter

    Twitter has suspended the account of Ms Carolyn Uchenna Okorafor, Principal Secretary to Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the suspension of Ms Okorafor is coming as the microblogging social media platform strives to make amends with the Nigerian government.

    Recall the Nigerian government suspended the use of Twitter in the country, stressing that the platform’s activity was in violation of public interest.

    The Nigerian government also stated that Twitter’s activity negates some provisions of the Terrorism Act as well as the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA).

    Following the suspension of the platform, Twitter has made several moves to comply, including suspending several persons suspected to have violated rules of the platform.

    The latest being the suspension of the account of the Principal Secretary to Nnamdi Kanu.

    TNG reports Ms Okorafor, who practices law in Texas and travels with Kanu as Principal Secretary tweets under the @Carolynkimbrly handle.

    Meanwhile, the social media platform had approached the Nigerian government over the ban on Twitter, and a committee had been set up for a truce to unsuspend the platform.

  • Internet giants threaten to pull out of Hong Kong over privacy plans

    Internet giants threaten to pull out of Hong Kong over privacy plans

    An association of companies such as Google, Twitter and Facebook is warning that the internet giants and their services will pull out of Hong Kong.

    The companies warned that their services will be pulled out if a planned tightening of data protection was implemented.

    The Asia Internet Coalition (AIC) criticised the proposed doxxing legislation as too vague and disproportionate, according to a letter to Hong Kong’s data protection commissioner, Ada Chung Lai-ling, posted on the AIC website on Tuesday.

    The privacy law was proposed after the personal information of police officers, and other public figures including the names, addresses, photographs of individuals were circulated online during the social unrest of 2019 and 2020.

    The publishing of such private information without permission is what is known as doxxing.

    AIC said it was “unnecessary and excessive’’ to prosecute local employees as intended if their overseas-based companies did not remove content from their platforms as required by authorities.

    “The only way to avoid these sanctions for technology companies would be to refrain from investing and offering their services in Hong Kong, thereby depriving Hong Kong businesses and consumers, whilst also creating new barriers to trade,’’ the letter said.

    The industry association shared the serious concern about “doxxing’’ but stressed that laws against it must be built upon principles of necessity and proportionality.

  • Twitter loses immunity over user generated content in India

    Twitter loses immunity over user generated content in India

    Twitter will no more enjoys liability protection against user-generated content in India as the U.S. micro blogging giant has failed to comply with new IT rules.

    The Indian government said in a court filing on Tuesday.

    The statement is the first time Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration has officially said Twitter has lost its immunity after repeatedly criticising the company for non-compliance.

    The dispute and the public spat had raised concern that American firms will find it difficult to do business amid a more stringent regulatory environment.

    India’s IT ministry told the High Court in New Delhi that Twitter’s non-compliance amounted to a breach of the provisions of the IT Act, causing the U.S. firm to lose its immunity, according to the filing dated July 5.

    The filing came in a case filed by a Twitter user who wanted to complain about some allegedly defamatory tweets on the platform, and said the company was not complying with the new law that requires appointment of certain new executives.

    Twitter declined to comment, the company has previously said it was making all efforts to comply.

    India’s new IT rules which became effective end of May were aimed at regulating content on social media firms and making them more accountable to legal requests for swift removal of posts and sharing details on the originators of messages.

    Technology minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has slammed Twitter for deliberately defying the law and said all social media firms must abide by the new rules.

    In recent weeks, as acrimony grew between New Delhi and Twitter, Indian police had filed at least five cases against the company or its officials, including some related to child pornography and a controversial map of India on its career page.

    Police in two Indian states have named Twitter India chief Manish Maheshwari in their complaints.

    Separately, the state of Uttar Pradesh had challenged the Supreme Court a bar on police action against Maheshwari, after a lower court protected him against arrest over an accusation that the platform was used to spread hate.

  • UK Diplomat meets Nigeria’s Attorney General over Twitter ban

    UK Diplomat meets Nigeria’s Attorney General over Twitter ban

    United Kingdom Diplomat, Ms. Catriona Laing, who is the High Commissioner of Great Britain in Nigeria on Thursday met with Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami.

    The meeting which lasted for almost an hour discussed bilateral issues relating to amongst others the suspension of Twitter in the country.

    Malami said the government has established a committee on the matter and that the company has approached the government over the issue.

    He maintained that the interest of Nigeria matters most for any company that wants to do business in the country.

    “If you want to operate as a business entity in Nigeria, you must do so within the context of Nigerian laws. Nothing offensive or that breaches the Nigerian laws should be entertained”.

    Malami said public interest has been the uppermost consideration within which the context of freedom of expressions should be regulated

    He noted that reasonable restrictions to freedom of expressions are locally and internationally recognized.

    “Our government is not averse to freedom. Freedom is not borderless.

    “Freedom of expression must not be used in such a manner that incites citizens to violence or calls for an overthrow of a democratically elected government.

    “There are bounds to freedom within the laws,” he said.

    Meanwhile, in her remarks, the British High Commissioner thanked the Minister for clarifying on the matter.

  • Meeting Twitter representatives after suspension is putting ‘cart before the horse’, Falana tells FG

    Meeting Twitter representatives after suspension is putting ‘cart before the horse’, Falana tells FG

    Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has faulted the Federal Government’s suspension of Twitter in Nigeria and its recent decision to hold talks with the company.

    The popular human rights lawyer who spoke on a monitored Channels Television programme said the decision to meet should have been planned before the suspension was done.

    He, however said it was a good development.

    “The Federal Government meeting with Twitter is a good development but in many instances, they put the cart before the horse. I feel this should have been done earlier. The government protested when it was dissatisfied with certain developments. This kind of meeting would have been called much earlier and the embarrassment and inconvenience that Nigerians were subjected to would have been totally avoided. But I think it is a good development that both sides are going to meet,” he said.

    When asked about the legality of ECOWAS’ involvement in the matter, Falana said: “In the 60s and 70s it was convenient for dictators in Africa to plead sovereignty that nobody should interfere with our internal affairs but in these days and times, one countries have submitted part of their sovereignties to international bodies, in this case the ECOWAS, Nigeria has ratified the protocols establishing the court as well as the supplementary project, it is therefore too late to rush back home and say we are independent, we are sovereign nation”.

    The Federal Government has since come under fire for its decision to ban the social media platform in the country both from citizens and the international community.

    Beyond the ban, the Minister for Justice, Abubakar Malami, had also announced that anyone found still using the app would be prosecuted.

    But on Tuesday, the ECOWAS Court of Justice joined the call to condemn the decisions.

    The court restrained the Federal Government from imposing sanctions or harassing, intimidating, arresting, or prosecuting Twitter.

    It also restricted the government from carrying out such actions against any other social media service provider, as well as media houses, pending the hearing and determination of a suit challenging the government’s suspension of Twitter operations in the country.

  • Twitter suspension lawful – FG

    Twitter suspension lawful – FG

    The Federal Government has said that its decision to suspend the activities of Twitter is well founded in law and it has not breach the citizens’ rights by so doing.

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed made this known in a presentation to the House of Representatives Joint Committee on the Suspension of Twitter in Nigeria.

    In the presentation, the minister contended that Twitter activity in the country is in violation of public interest and negate some provisions of Terrorism Act as well as Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA).

    The minister said Twitter suspension is in line with national and international laws which give Nigeria the power to regulate its cyber space and give all necessary orders designating any computer system, network or application as forming part of its national infrastructure.

    Mohammed, a lawyer, contended the freedom of expression guaranteed in Section 39 of the 1999 Constitution is not absolute.

    He explained that Section 49 of the same Constitution permits restrictions of civil liberties in the public interest stressing,“public Interest takes precedent over individual interest’’.

    “The operations of Twitter in the Nigerian social space is not legally permissible when it is used in airing of information that endangers the life and security of the majority of citizens of Nigeria.

    “This is in light of the fact that the platform affords IPOB, an organisation already proscribed by the Federal High Court, to champion its seditious and terrorist based activities

    “The principles of law are clear on the exercise of personal human rights in the face of national security threats which affects the larger citizen,’’ he said.

    The minister also argued that the federal government is empowered to take all reasonable steps to defend its cyber space where it perceives or finds that a Cyber-crime, is threatened to be committed or has been committed.

    He said both national and international statutes empower the federal government to regulate and promote the security of the Nigerian cyber space, including but not limited to organisation and user’s assets.

    “Organisation and ​user’s assets include connected computing devices, personnel, infrastructure, applications, services and telecommunications systems.

    “It also included the totality of transmitted and/or stored ​information within the Nigerian cyber-Space/environment including social media such as Twitter, Facebook…, applications, internet platforms, and cloud computing platforms,’’ he said.

    Mohammed stressed that where a seditious act has been committed against the Federal Government through the Cyber Space the perpetrators shall be liable.

    The minister noted that the rights to freedom of expression on the Twitter platform is qualified by the provisions of sections 5(1) and (2) of the Terrorism Act of 2011.

    He said the sections provide that any person who directly or indirectly solicit or render support for commission of an act of terrorism commits an offence liable on conviction to not less than 20 years.

    “This include incitement to commit a terrorist act through the internet or any electronic means or through the use of printed materials or through the dissemination of terrorist information”.

    Mohammed said the operation of Twitter as business entity in Nigeria without fulfilling the conditions precedent by registering with the Corporate Affairs Commission is illegal.

    He said CAMA, the primary law governing businesses in Nigeria provides that a foreign company must take necessary steps to obtain incorporation as a separate entity before engaging in any business.

    “Until so incorporated, the foreign company shall not carry on business in Nigeria or exercise any powers of a registered company as provides in Section 78 (1) of CAMA, 2020.

    “Hence, flowing from this background a foreign Company as Twitter cannot be clothed with the legitimate rights to operate as a company registered in Nigeria, as they are not licensed accordingly,’’ he said.

    The minister said that the State Security Services (SSS) which provided the lawful basis for the suspension of Twitter acted in line with its power of prevention and detection of any crime against the internal security of Nigeria.

    He reiterated government position to the committee that the ban on the operation of the micro blogging platform, Twitter, is in the interest of the country.

    The Federal Government on June 4 suspended indefinitely, the operations of the micro-blogging and social networking service, Twitter in Nigeria.

    Mohammed who announced the suspension cited the persistent use of the platform for activities capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.

    He said the Federal Government had also directed the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to immediately commence the process of licensing all Over the Top (OTT) and social media operations in the country.

    Following the outcry that greeted the suspension by a section of Nigerians the House of Representatives had referred the case to the joint committee which in turn summoned the minister for interrogation.