The House of Representatives has invited the Minister of Culture and Information, Lai Mohammed in a bid to investigate the legality of the Twitter ban by the Federal Government.
The decision was reached on Tuesday during plenary.
The House mandated its committees on communication, justice, information and culture, and national security and intelligence to immediately commence an investigation into the suspension of the microblogging site.
The Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, in his opening address at the plenary on Tuesday, noted that the micro-blogging platform had become a huge communication tool and platform for enterprise especially for the teeming youth in the country.
Gbajabiamila also noted that the lawmakers had been inundated with protests and demands for intervention by the parliament.
“The House of Representatives recognises that Twitter, like other social media networks, is an important tool for communication and commerce in Nigeria, particularly amongst the younger generation who have used these networks for enterprise and innovation with great success.
“It is in service of our obligations under the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and our moral duty to the Nigerian people, that the leadership of the House has decided to mandate the House Committees on Communication, Justice, Information and Culture, and National Security and Intelligence to immediately commence an investigation to determine the circumstances of the decision by the Federal Government of Nigeria to suspend the operations of Twitter in Nigeria, and the legal authority for the ban on the operations of Twitter in Nigeria.
“The Committees are additionally mandated to invite the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed to brief the House of Representatives on the objectives, intent, and duration of the suspension on the operations of Twitter in Nigeria, and to report to the House within ten days.”
