Aisha Buhari aligns with FG, deactivates her Twitter account

Wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, Aisha, has deactivated her account on Twitter, less than 24 hours after the Federal Government suspended the operations of the social media service in Nigeria indefinitely.

Indeed, Aisha made the announcement to deactivate her Twitter account just before midnight via the same platform (tweet).

“I will be deactivating my Twitter account for now. Long live Federal Republic of Nigeria,” she tweeted at 11:59pm on Friday.

It was learnt that minutes later, the Twitter account that had one million followers as of June was no longer available on the social media platform.

Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, in announcing the ban on Twitter, said the government was forced to act because of “the persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.”

The sanction of the social media service has sparked widespread outrage, with many Nigerians, including celebrities, condemning the move.

Also reacting, the microblogging site described the directive as “deeply concerning.”

It stated, “The announcement made by the Nigerian Government that they have suspended Twitter’s operations in Nigeria is deeply concerning.

“We’re investigating and will provide updates when we know more.”

The suspension of Twitter operations in Nigeria announced on Friday was a culmination of events that had happened this past week.

Twitter deleted tweets and videos of President Muhammadu Buhari making threats of punishment to a sect called IPOB in the South-East part of the country after he blamed them for attacks on government buildings.

He then made a reference to Nigeria’s civil war events in the 1960s, which seemed to offend many Nigerians.

Buhari, who was the country’s Head of State in the 1980s and served in the army against secessionists, said young Nigerians in the South East were too young to remember the horrible events that occurred during the war.

According to him, the activities of the present-day secessionists are likely headed toward war; hence, it was proactive to stop them beforehand with force.

“Those of us in the fields for 30 months, who went through the war, will treat them in the language they understand,” he said.

Twitter chose to delete the tweet, which it said violated its abusive behaviour policy and several calls by Nigerians to take it down.

Twitter also suspended the President’s account, leaving it in a “read-only mode” for 12 hours.

Following its decision, Mohammed called out the social media giant by saying its decision was biased and said the President had a right to express his thoughts on events that affect the country.

He also raised suspicion about the platform’s intention in the country. “Twitter may have its own rules; it’s not the universal rule. If Mr President anywhere in the world feels very bad and concerned about a situation, he is free to express such views… The mission of Twitter in Nigeria is very, very suspect,” he said.