Published 13th Jan, 2022

By Emmanuel Uti

On Wednesday, the federal government of Nigeria lifted the ban on Twitter, exactly 223 days after they imposed an indefinite ban on the microblogging website in Nigeria.

Inuwa Abdullahi, chairman, Technical Committee, Nigeria-Twitter Engagement, and Director-General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), announced the president’s decision to lift the ban in Abuja on Wednesday.

Although the lifting was to take effect from 12 am on Thursday, Nigerians could not access Twitter until much later.

The ban saw many prominent and staunch supporters of the government, such as Aisha Buhari, delete their accounts. However, here is a list of six Nigerians who did not delete their accounts but were hit hard by the ban.

TOLU OGUNLESI

When Larry Madowo, a CNN interviewer, asked Tolu Ogunlesi if he supported the ban on Twitter in Nigeria, he stammered from time to time, but could not fully defend the ban. Madowo said Ogunlesi wouldn’t say explicitly that he supported the ban, even when he pushed.

Nigerians did not let his rambling answer slide after the interview with Madowo. He was heavily criticised for giving an incoherent answer, which suggested he was really hit by the ban.

Given that Twitter is very much different from other platforms, Ogunlesi was very active on the platform before the ban, answering questions thrown at him. Nonetheless, after the FG banned Twitter in the country, he stopped using the app.

He was among the several Buhari supporters who rushed to Twitter after the ban was lifted. However, his comment sections have been locked as he is avoiding the reactions of angry Nigerians.

BASHIR AHMAD

Bashir Ahmad, the personal assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on new media, was far more active on Twitter than on any other social media platform before the ban.

As a Buhari supporter, Ahmad did not protest the ban, but an independent investigation by FIJ revealed that he secretly used the platform after the ban.

On September 11, 2021, Ahmad liked a tweet by Abiy Ahmed Ali, the Ethiopian president. Again, on October 28, he liked a tweet from Haramain Sharifain, the official news handle of the two grand mosques in Saudi Arabia.

IYABO AWOKOYA

Another ‘staunch defender of the Buhari government’ hit by the Twitter ban is Iyabo Awokoya, infamously referred to as “Mummy Poverty” by Twitter users. In the first half of the ban, she did not comment on the platform.

However, following the release of the #EndSARS panel report, Awokoya tweeted for the first time in a while to reiterate her point that there was no massacre.

After the dust of the panel report had settled, she continued to use Twitter. Although she hardly tweeted, she retweeted many posts.

GARBA SHEHU

The Twitter ban hit Garba Shehu, the senior special assistant on media and publicity to the president.

FIJ’s findings revealed that Shehu Garba used Twitter during the ban.

On September 5, Shehu liked a tweet by Defense News Nigeria praising the prowess of the Nigerian Army. He must have forgotten when he tapped the love icon to like the post.

After the ban was lifted, he said Nigerians had gained ‘immeasurably’ from the ban.

LAURETTA ONOCHIE

The personal assistant to the president on social media was a passionate Twitter user before the ban. As a vigorous defender of the Buhari government, she tweeted daily in praise of the government and in condemnation of those who were against it.

Prior to the #EndSARS protest, she had an argument with Ayo Balogun, better known as Wizkid, about Buhari. Lauretta was irritated. She did not like the fact that Wizkid referred to Buhari as an old man.

After the ban, she disappeared from the platform, but returned to Twitter today following the lifting of the ban.

Share on Social Media