By Chinelo Obogo
The Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS Court) has ruled that the Federal Government’s ban on Twitter, a micro-blogging platform, was unlawful and inconsistent with the African Charter and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Following the deletion of President Muhammadu Buhari’s tweet, Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed announced the suspension of Twitter in Nigeria in June 2021.
The government also threatened to arrest and prosecute anyone using Twitter in the country, while the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) asked all broadcast stations to suspend the patronage of Twitter.
However, in a judgment delivered, yesterday, the ECOWAS Court ruled that the suspension of the Twitter operation by the Nigerian government violated the applicant’s rights to the enjoyment of freedom of expression, access to information and media, contrary to international and regional laws.
A lawyer for Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Organisation, Ikechukwu Uzoma, who was an amicus curiae (friend of the court) to the case, stated on his Twitter handle that the court ordered President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration to guarantee the non-repetition of the unlawful ban of Twitter and undertake legislative or other measures on the use of Twitter to enable the enjoy freedom of expression.
According to the Court, “The Buhari administration in suspending the operations of Twitter violates the rights of SERAP and 176 concerned Nigerians to the enjoyment of freedom of expression, access to information and the media, as well as the right to fair hearing.”
The Court also ordered the Federal Government to take necessary steps to align its policies and other measures to give effect to the rights and freedoms, and to guarantee a non-repetition of the unlawful ban of Twitter.
The Court also ordered the government to bear the costs of the proceedings and directed the Deputy Chief Registrar to assess the costs accordingly.
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and 196 others, Media Rights Agency and eight others, Malcolm Omirhobo, and Patrick Elohor had filed the suit at ECOWAS Court last year challenging the action of President Buhari in banning Twitter in the country.
Reacting to the judgment, Femi Falana, SERAP lawyer in the suit said: “We commend the ECOWAS Court for the landmark judgment in the case of SERAP v Federal Republic of Nigeria in which the Judges unanimously upheld the human rights of community citizens to freedom of expression, and access to information. Even though the Court had granted an interim order of injunction last year which restrained the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami from prosecuting Nigerians who defied the Twitter ban, SERAP deserves special commendation for pursuing the matter to a logical conclusion.”