The Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) has instructed all telecom operators, including MTN, Airtel and Glo to implement suspension of Twitter as announced by the Federal Government on Friday.
Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria, Gbenga Adebayo, in a statement on Friday confirmed that its members had received the directive and were acting accordingly.
“We, the Association of Licensed Telecommunication Operators of Nigeria, wish to confirm that our members have received formal instructions from the Nigerian Communications Commission, the industry regulator, to suspend access to Twitter.
“ALTON has conducted a robust assessment of the request in accordance with internationally accepted principles.
“Based on national interest provisions in the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003, and within the license terms under which the industry operates; our members have acted in compliance with the directives of the NCC, the industry regulator.
“We will continue to engage all the relevant authorities and stakeholders and will act as may be further directed by the NCC,” the statement read in part.
The ALTON boss pledged the organisation’s continued co-operation and compliance to the dictates of the government while also acknowledging the position of the United Nations on human right and freedom of expression.
“We remain committed to supporting the government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and upholding the rights of citizens.
“As an industry, we endorse the position of the United Nations that the rights held by people offline must also be protected online.
“This includes respecting and protecting the rights of all people to communicate, to share information freely and responsibly, and to enjoy privacy and security regarding their data and their use of digital communications.” It further read.
