MINISTER of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed has said that Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has the liberty to express his views concerning the state of security in the South-East part of the country.
Mohammad said this on Wednesday while addressing journalists at the State House after a social media platform, Twitter, deleted the president’s post that threatened to unleash mayhem on South-East Nigeria.
The ICIR had reported that Twitter deleted Buhari’s post after Nigerians reported him of threatening genocide against South-East Nigeria that has recorded attacks on government facilities.
Responding to Twitter’s action, Mohammed said Buhari was free to express such views if he felt ‘very bad and concerned’ about a situation.
“…Any organisation that gives directives to its members, to attack police stations, to kill policemen, to attack correctional centres, to kill warders, and you are now saying that Mr. President does not have the right to express his dismay and anger about that? We are the ones guilty of double standards,” Mohammed said.
The minister also said the actions of Twitter in Nigeria was ‘suspicious,’ accusing the platform of playing double standards by ignoring the posts of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) Nnamdi Kanu.
He said he had not seen anywhere in the world where an organisation or someone outside Nigeria would direct his members to destroy and attack symbols of authority.
Recently, violence has reigned in South-East Nigeria, ranging from killing and attacks of police and Army officers to attacks on Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)’s offices.
Lukman Abolade is an Investigative reporter with The ICIR. Reach out to him via labolade@icirnigeria.org, on twitter @AboladeLAA and FB @Correction94