The ECOWAS Court of Justice has
served hearing notice on the Buhari government in the suit filed by SERAP and
176 Nigerians on the unlawful suspension of Twitter.
The suit is fixed for 22 June
2021 for the hearing of application for interim orders, SERAP said on Twitter
on Monday night.
“Having been duly served,
President Buhari should immediately rescind the suspension of Twitter, pending
the hearing of the application, for the sake of the integrity and sanctity of
the court, the rule of law, and Nigeria’s leadership role in the ECOWAS
sub-region”, SERAP added in the update on the case.
The case was filed last week to challenge President Muhammadu Buhari’s ban on the micro-blogging social media platform.
Nigeria’s leading human rights
lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana is representing the 177 plaintiffs.
They sued Buhari for
criminalisation of Nigerians and other people using Twitter, and the escalating
repression of human rights, particularly the rights to freedom of expression,
access to information, and media freedom in the country.”
In the suit No ECW/CCJ/APP/23/21
filed 8 June before the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice in Abuja, SERAP and
the concerned Nigerians are seeking: “An order of interim injunction
restraining the Federal Government from implementing its suspension of Twitter
in Nigeria.
The 177 Nigerians also seek a
stay order on government from subjecting anyone including media houses,
broadcast stations using Twitter in Nigeria, to harassment, intimidation,
arrest and criminal prosecution, pending the hearing and determination of the
substantive suit.”
In the suit , the Plaintiffs
contend that “if this application is not urgently granted, the Federal
Government will continue to arbitrarily suspend Twitter and threaten to impose
criminal and other sanctions on Nigerians, telecommunication companies, media
houses, broadcast stations and other people using Twitter in Nigeria, the
perpetual order sought in this suit might be rendered nugatory.”
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