The Nigerian government has stated that it has no plans to again prohibit social media platforms in the nation.

Alhajir Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information, revealed this at a news conference in Abuja on Thursday.

According to the Minister, the federal government would not allow any platform to precipitate a national emergency.

Following Twitter’s acquisition by a new owner, the government has stated that it will continue to watch the platform’s progress.

The Minister stated that last year’s suspension of the platform was owing to the propensity of certain forces to exploit it to destabilize Nigeria through the dissemination of fake news, disinformation, and hate speech.

Mohammed cautioned that the government does not want to prohibit any media outlet from performing its job and that it will not permit any platform to be exploited to plunge the nation into anarchy.

The minister said, ” Many have called to ask us what will become of our agreement with Twitter in view of the change in its ownership. Many have asked for our reaction following reports that there has been a spike in fake news, disinformation, and hate speech since the micro-blogging site changed ownership. Many have even asked us if another ban is in the offing.

“Let me say this, we are closely monitoring the evolving developments at Twitter. It has never been our intention to ban any social media platform or stifle free speech. Not at all. What happened in the case of Twitter is well-known to all. Twitter became a platform of choice for those who want to destabilize Nigeria, using fake news, disinformation, and hate speech.

“No nation will allow any social media platform to plunge it into anarchy. Definitely not Nigeria. But we have continued to engage positively with the different social media platforms, including Facebook, Google (owners of YouTube), and Twitter.

“We have no intention of banning any social media platform again. But we will also not sit by and allow any platform whatsoever to throw our nation into crisis,” the minister said.

YNaija