By TOM CHIAHEMEN, Abuja –
American microblogging and social networking service provider, Twitter, has agreed to the majority of the conditions laid out by the Federal Government of Nigeria in order for its (Twitter’s) service to be restored in the country.
In a letter it wrote to the Federal Government, Twitter is also seeking an earliest possible restoration of services in Nigeria, while offering to implement five measures aimed at resolving the differences between it and the government.
In the letter dated December 3, 2021 and addressed to the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, Twitter said it had heard and understood the concerns of the Nigerian government and that it was prepared to meet the registration, compliance, tax, and local representation requirements outlined by the Technical Group.
“We remain fully committed to abiding by each of those commitments,” said the letter signed by Sinéad McSweeney, Vice President, Global Public Policy (and) Managing Director, Twitter Dublin.
The Nigerian government had on June 5, 2021, placed an official ban on the use of Twitter in the country, accusing the owners of persistently using the platform to promote “activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.”
This was in addition to the official anger that greeted the decision by the owners of Twitter to delete tweets made by President Muhammadu Buhari concerning the growing agitations by the people of South-East.
McSweeney’s letter to the NITDA Director-General confirms the recent statement by the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, to the effect that Twitter had agreed to all the conditions laid out by the Federal Government regarding its operations in Nigeria.
Keyamo, who is also a member of a committee set up to review the operations of the microblogging platform since its ban in the country, said the committee has made significant progress so far.
The Twitter MD, in the latest letter, said the social media platform was hopeful that its commitment to addressing the Nigerian government’s concerns was “a testament to our desire to work towards a mutually agreeable resolution that leads to quick restoration of our service in Nigeria and a more collaborative relationship moving forward.”
It was not however clear whether Twitter had also agreed to open an office in Nigeria – one of the sticky issues that appeared to be responsible for the delay in sealing the discussions between the American microblogging company and the Federal Government’s team.
A copy of the letter, obtained by NATIONAL ACCORD in Abuja on Monday, reads in part:
“As discussed, this letter serves as a respectul acknowledgement of Nigerian laws and culture. It also details the various local compliance mechanisms we propose to establish. Finally, as agreed, this letter affirms that an industry Code of Conduct can be revisited in the near future with the full spectrum of relevant stakeholders, including industry and civil society representatives, once Twitter and the Federal Government have arrived at a near-term accommodation.
“Respectful Acknowledgement of Nigerian Laws & Culture
“Twitter engages governments and agencies across the world on issues related to local laws and regulations. It is our intention, as we continue to work with you and other government stakeholders, to act with respectful acknowledgement of Nigerian laws and the national culture and history on which such legislation has been built. We want to learn, to act with humility, and to seek expert opinion whenever necessary.
“ We believe there is already significant alignment between the laws cited in the document you recently shared and Twitter’s existing Terms of Service. The Terms of Service are informed by our responsibility to respect international human rights law and are directed towards ensuring the safety and security of everyone on our platform. Indeed, both Nigerian laws and Twitter’s Rules contemplate a broad range of online harms, including abuse and harassment, hateful conduct, violent threats, incitement and glorification of violence, sharing of private information, publication of hacked materials, credible threats to national security, and so on. Therefore, it can be said that we share the same concerns and we have the same goal: we want Twitter to be a safer place for Nigerians. I believe we can work towards this goal together through continuous dialogue.
“As we will detail below, the compliance apparatus we intend to construct over the coming months – should our service be restored – will be comprehensive, highly accessible, and transparent. Nigerian government and law enforcement agencies will have multiple channels through which to report and escalate matters of concern. Indeed, you can be assured that a direct line will always be available.
“Twitter & Local Compliance Processes
“We have heard and understood the concerns of the Nigerian government and we have therefore agreed to the majority of the conditions you laid out in order for our service to be restored. In our letter from September 23, we outlined how and when we would meet the registration, compliance, tax, and local representation requirements outlined by the Technical Group. We remain fully committed to abiding by each of those commitments.
“I would like to take this opportunity to highlight the compliance channels that we have established or intend to establish in the near future, similar to other markets:
1. We have set up a direct channel with our EMEA Public Policy team to engage with relevant government departments and law enforcement agencies. This will include the office of the President and all relevant high-level decision makers at relevant ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs).
2. We also offer additional local support from our esteemed consultancy firm, the Albright Stonebridge Group. Both of our ASG consultants are Nigerian – one is based in Abuja, while the other is in Washington, D.C. This ensures more expansive timezone coverage.
3. We will appoint Outside Counsel to act as our communication channel with your government within one month of restoring our service.
4. We also commit to onboarding government departments to our Partner Support Portal, through which they can escalate issues such as account compromise, abuse, harmful misleading information, etc.
5. Separately, we have offered to onboard Nigerian law enforcement agencies to a dedicated portal for legal requests. We will offer a tailored training session for all interested parties, once the Federal Government provides a list of participants. This service, along with Counsel, will become the backbone of our legal compliance operation for Nigeria.
“To meet the local representation requirement, we also expressed a commitment to establish a legal entity in Nigeria during the first quarter of 2022 pending service restoration. The legal entity will register with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). We view the establishment of the entity as a first step in demonstrating our long-term commitment to Nigeria. As service is restored and Twitter’s business stablisises, we will continue to assess how our physical presence in Nigeria can be developed.
“It is our belief and hope that the measures outlined above represent Twitter’s commitment to developing a comprehensive compliance apparatus that will prove satisfactory to the Nigerian government. As we have learned through our many years operating in countries around the world, compliance is an ongoing and case-by-case undertaking. It requires understanding, good faith, and communication on both sides. Twitter commits to this undertaking and we look forward to working with you for many years to come.
“Resolution
As mentioned during our last meeting and previous correspondence, a central part of our company’s strategy is the development of Twitter in Africa, including Nigeria. We are currently making investment decisions for 2022, including fulfilling the commitments to the preconditions you laid out, which will also require the allocation of budget. However, with the service block in place after almost six months, it will be difficult to consider anything more in Nigeria if we do not resolve this situation. As you will no doubt appreciate, these investment decisions require long-term planning and a stable business environment.
“We hope that this letter has sufficiently addressed the issues discussed last week. We look forward to the swift restoration of our service in Nigeria, so we can continue to provide a platform for the Nigerian people and your government to communicate with the world. If the Ministerial Committee wishes to meet with us directly to address any concerns or seek additional assurance from our end, we would be happy to do so.”
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