Twitter, the microblogging platform banned in Nigeria, has reached out to the Federal Government for negotiations over the recent suspension of its activities in the country, Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammed has disclosed.
Mohammed told State House correspondents on Wednesday in Abuja after the weekly Federal Executive Council that Twitter is seeking high-level discussion to resolve the issue.
The message got to him that morning, he said.
Mohammed restated the fact that Twitter was suspended because it provided an avenue for people threatening the corporate existence of Nigeria.
According to him, Twitter failed to take down tweets by Nnamdi Kanu the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, despite repeated requests to do so.
The conditions for Twitter to meet, even if there is a discussion between the two parties, include that the company must now be registered in Nigeria as a business concern, Mohammed said.
The same condition applies to other social media platforms such as Facebook, he added.
Contrary to the opinions of critics of the government, Mohammed said that freedom of speech has not been stifled in the country by the suspension of Twitter, as Nigerians can still use other platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.