#KeepItOn: Lawyer sues Lai Mohammed, Malami over Twitter Suspension

A human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong, has sued the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), and the Federal Government for suspending social media platform, Twitter.

In the originating motion 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.

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

The activist asked the court to declare that the act of the respondents in “suspending the operation and accessibility of Twitter in Nigeria without any written law that is reasonably justifiable in a democratic society enabling the said suspension is unconstitutional and unjustifiable.