The ECOWAS Court on has “declared unlawful the suspension of Twitter by the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, and ordered the administration never to repeat it again.”
“The Buhari administration is further ordered to bear the costs of the suit.”
The ruling follows a suit No ECW/CCJ/APP/23/21 brought by Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and 176 concerned Nigerians before the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice in Abuja.
The suit read in part: “The suspension of Twitter is aimed at intimidating and stopping Nigerians from using Twitter and other social media platforms to assess government policies, expose corruption, and criticize acts of official impunity by the agents of the Federal Government.”
“The suspension of Twitter is arbitrary, and there is no law in Nigeria today permitting the prosecution of people simply for peacefully exercising their human rights through Twitter and other social media platforms.”
The court’s ruling was disclosed today by SERAP deputy director Kolawole Oluwadare.
BREAKING: Final judgment: ECOWAS Court declares suspension of Twitter in Nigeria unlawful; orders the Buhari administration never to repeat it again.
The Buhari administration is further ordered to bear the costs of the suit.
— SERAP (@SERAPNigeria) July 14, 2022
Recall that the Buhari administration had in June 2021 suspended the operations of Twitter in Nigeria following the deletion of President Muhammadu Buhari’s tweet.
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.
ECOWAS Court in its ruling on Thursday said the said the suspension of Twitter operation in Nigeria is unlawful and inconsistent with the provisions of Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights both of which Nigeria is a state party.
“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,” according to the court.
Buhari’s administration was also ordered by the court to bear the cost of the proceedings and directed the Deputy Chief Registrar to assess the costs accordingly.
Reacting to the ruling, Femi Falana, SAN 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 SAN from prosecuting Nigerians who defied the Twitter ban, SERAP deserves special commendation for pursuing the matter to a logical conclusion.”
“Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right and the full enjoyment of this right is central to achieving individual freedom and to developing democracy. It is not only the cornerstone of democracy, but indispensable to a thriving civil society.”
“With the latest decision of the Court to declare the suspension of Twitter in Nigeria illegal it is hoped that the Heads of State and Governments of the member states of the Economic Community of West African States will henceforth respect and uphold the human right of community to freedom of expression guaranteed by Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights.”
Ifunanya Ikueze is an Engineer, Safety Professional, Writer, Investor, Entrepreneur and Educator.
