The Nigerian government has ordered both public and private broadcast stations operating in the country to immediately delete their Twitter accounts, citing an earlier ban on the social media platform.

The Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC) issued the directive in a statement on Monday morning. It came a day after Peoples Gazette reported that some broadcast stations have stopped distributing their contents to social media amidst fears of a government crackdown.

The NBC in its Monday morning statement touted its powers to regulate activities of broadcast stations, including enforcement of federal laws and regulations.

But the Twitter ban was a directive issued via a press release from the ministry of information under Lai Mohammed, and legal scholars argued it cannot be taken as a law or actionable instrument.

The ban came a day after Twitter deleted President Muhammadu Buhari’s tweets for apparent genocidal threats against the people of Eastern Nigeria. The president denied threatening violence, saying he was only recalling the carnage that characterised the Nigerian Civil War of 1967-70 to prevent a repeat.

Details shortly…