An Abuja-based human rights lawyer, Pelumi Olajengbesi, says there is nothing to rejoice over on the lifting on suspension of Twitter by the Federal Government.
According to the lawyer, Twitter is beyond a social media platform but a money-making avenue for Nigerian youths who makes a living through content creating and sharing on the platform.
The Buhari regime had suspended Twitter operations in Nigeria on June 4, 2021, after the micro-blogging platform deleted a controversial civil war post by the President. Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, had said the "persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria's corporate existence".
According to the NetBlocks Cost of Shutdown Tool, Nigeria's economy lost N104.02m ($250,600) every hour to the ban on Twitter as of December 2021.
Olajengbesi, who is the Managing Partner of Law Corridor in Abuja, called on the government to compensate the affected youths and businesses.
"The waste is unnecessary, and the government's action is completely unhelpful.
"With Nigeria's unemployment rate approaching 40%, a government that cannot create jobs for millions of employable youths while cutting off their source of income is not acting in the citizens' best interests.
"The Buhari government must learn to live with Nigerians rather than using punitive measures to inflict agony on Nigerians and violate citizens' fundamental human rights."
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