The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said the directive by the All Progressives Congress (APC) - led Federal Government to arrest and prosecute any Nigerian using Twitter, is unconstitutional, illegal, null and void.

The party in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan said the directive by the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, is not only ludicrous, but shows the desperation by the presidency to muzzle, victimise and clamp down on innocent Nigerians and foist a totalitarian system on the country.

PDP stated that there is nothing in the extant laws that criminalises the use of Twitter by Nigerians or empowers the Federal Governments to arrest and prosecute any Nigerians for using Twitter.

“For Malami’s information, section 36 (12) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) provides that ‘a person shall not be convicted of a criminal offence unless that offence is defined and the penalty therefor is prescribed in a written law, and in this subsection, a written law refers to an Act of the National Assembly or a law of a state, any subsidiary legislation or instrument under the provisions of the law.

“Moreover, they should also realise that the suspension of Twitter by the APC Federal Government, in addition to its unconstitutionality, only suspended Twitter operations and not the use of Twitter by Nigerians.

“The directive by the Attorney General to arrest and prosecute any Nigerian found using Twitter, does not have the backing of any law enacted by the National Assembly or any state legislative house, and as such, Malami’s declaration is completely of no legal consequence,” the party noted.

(New Telegraph)

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