ECOWAS Deter FG From Unlawfully Arresting Nigerians Following SERAP’s Suit
President Muhammadu Buhari | The Nation Newspaper
The ECOWAS Court of Justice in Abuja has now deterred the Nigerian government from unlawfully imposing sanctions on individuals, parties, or bodies pending the hearing of the suit filed against the government by Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and 176 bothered Nigerians.
“(The court) restrained the government of President Muhammadu Buhari and its agents from unlawfully imposing sanctions or doing anything whatsoever to harass, intimidate, arrest or prosecute Twitter and/or any other social media service provider(s), media houses, radio and television broadcast stations, the Plaintiffs and other Nigerians who are Twitter users, pending the hearing and determination of this suit.”
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and 176 concerned Nigerians filed a suit against the government that “the unlawful suspension of Twitter in Nigeria, criminalization of Nigerians and other people using Twitter have escalated repression of human rights and unlawfully restricted the rights of Nigerians and other people to freedom of expression, access to information, and media freedom in the country.”
After hearing statements from solicitor to SERAP, in the person of Femi Falana SAN, and lawyer to the government Maimuna Shiru, the courthouse gave out the order.
The court said:
“The court has listened very well to the objection by Nigeria. The court has this to say. Any interference with Twitter is viewed as inference with human rights, and that will violate human rights. Therefore, this court has jurisdiction to hear the case. The court also hereby orders that the application be heard expeditiously. The Nigerian government must take immediate steps to implement the order.”
Responding to the order, Femi Falana, SAN said:
“The intervention of the ECOWAS Court is a timely relief for millions of Nigerians using Twitter who have been threatened with prosecution under the provision of the Penal Code relating to sedition.”
“Contrary to the assurance credited to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN that violators of the Twitter would not be prosecuted, the Federal Government filed processes in the ECOWAS Court threatening to prosecute Nigerians using Twitter for violating the suspension under the provisions of the Penal Code relating to sedition.”
“It is extremely embarrassing that the Federal Government could threaten to jail Nigerians for sedition, which was annulled by the Court of Appeal in 1983, in the case of Arthur Nwankwo vs The State.”
The suit and the ruling came after the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed halted Twitter activity in Nigeria after finding the micro-blogging platform “suspect.”
A subsequent suit has been adjourned to 6th July 2021 for hearing.
