Lai: I’ve No Mission With Twitter In US

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed,
says the online media report that he “sneaked out of Nigeria to
meet with Twitter executive’’ in the U.S. is fake.

In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in
Washington on Wednesday, the minister said his official visit to
the U.S. has nothing to do with the microblogging and social
networking platform.

Mohammed said he was in the U.S. to meet with international
media organisations and think tanks on the achievements of
President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and efforts made so far
in tackling insurgency, banditry and all forms of criminality.

He said the online report was an example of the danger fake news
and unregulated social media portend for the country.

“Can a minister sneak out of Nigeria without people knowing?

“When you say I sneaked out of Nigeria, are you saying I went to
board at a terminal where nobody is or I travel to the Republic of
Benin to fly out of the country?

“I was at an international airport, where I presented myself
openly and I was checked in at the counter like every other
traveller of the airline.

“I boarded and passed through the checks by the Immigration
Service and Customs.

“How can you come and say I sneaked out of the country?’’.

The minister who had so far engaged with the BBC Radio and TV,
Bloomberg and Polico during his visit to Washington DC, said he had
no mission with Twitter on his trip.

“You and I have been here, have I met with any Twitter
official­?

“When you talk about fake news and its danger, we need to take
it seriously and I am happy that the entire world has now seen what
we saw more than two years ago.

“I can assure you that we will not rest until we regulate the
social media, otherwise, nobody will survive it,’’ he said.

The minister reiterated the position that the Federal Government
suspended Twitter operations in the country not because it deleted
the tweet by the President as being propagated in some section of
the media.

He said the operation of the microblogging medium was suspended
because of its persistent use of its platform for activities that
were capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.

He also underscored the need for the organisation to register as
a business entity and obtain a licence from the National
Broadcasting Commission to carry out its activities.

Mohammed said the engagement between Twitter and the Federal
Government on how to resolve the issue of the ban had reached an
advanced stage.

Specifically, he said the end for the amicable settlement of the
ban was in sight.

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed,
says the online media report that he “sneaked out of Nigeria to
meet with Twitter executive’’ in the U.S. is fake.

In an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in
Washington on Wednesday, the minister said his official visit to
the U.S. has nothing to do with the microblogging and social
networking platform.

Mohammed said he was in the U.S. to meet with international
media organisations and think tanks on the achievements of
President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and efforts made so far
in tackling insurgency, banditry and all forms of criminality.

He said the online report was an example of the danger fake news
and unregulated social media portend for the country.

“Can a minister sneak out of Nigeria without people knowing?

“When you say I sneaked out of Nigeria, are you saying I went to
board at a terminal where nobody is or I travel to the Republic of
Benin to fly out of the country?

“I was at an international airport, where I presented myself
openly and I was checked in at the counter like every other
traveller of the airline.

“I boarded and passed through the checks by the Immigration
Service and Customs.

“How can you come and say I sneaked out of the country?’’.

The minister who had so far engaged with the BBC Radio and TV,
Bloomberg and Polico during his visit to Washington DC, said he had
no mission with Twitter on his trip.

“You and I have been here, have I met with any Twitter
official­?

“When you talk about fake news and its danger, we need to take
it seriously and I am happy that the entire world has now seen what
we saw more than two years ago.

“I can assure you that we will not rest until we regulate the
social media, otherwise, nobody will survive it,’’ he said.

The minister reiterated the position that the Federal Government
suspended Twitter operations in the country not because it deleted
the tweet by the President as being propagated in some section of
the media.

He said the operation of the microblogging medium was suspended
because of its persistent use of its platform for activities that
were capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.

He also underscored the need for the organisation to register as
a business entity and obtain a licence from the National
Broadcasting Commission to carry out its activities.

Mohammed said the engagement between Twitter and the Federal
Government on how to resolve the issue of the ban had reached an
advanced stage.

Specifically, he said the end for the amicable settlement of the
ban was in sight.