By Chijioke Ohuocha
ABUJA – Nigerian telecoms firms have shut down access to Twitter after a regulatory directive, an industry body said on Saturday, a day after the government said it would suspend the U.S. social media giant indefinitely.
Nigeria said on Friday it had indefinitely suspended Twitter’s activities, two days after the company removed a post from President Muhammadu Buhari that threatened to punish regional secessionists in the West African country.
“We, the Association of Licensed Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) wish to confirm that our members have received formal instructions from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to suspend access to Twitter,” it said.
ALTON said telecoms companies have complied with NCC‘s directive, based on national interest. It said the association will engage with authorities and stakeholders and act as directed further.
“As an industry, we endorse the position of the United Nations that the rights held by people offline must also be protected online,” ALTON said.