On Saturday morning between 11 am and 12 pm, as Nigerians woke up to the reality of a Twitter ban, and downloading Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to access Twitter, the Nigerian government, through the office of the Presidency, reached out to the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) to discuss plans to build an internet firewall, FIJ has learnt.

The government officials present at the meeting include Ibrahim Gambari, the Chief of Staff to the President, and Lai Mohammed, Minister of Information and Culture.

The internet firewall is a way of having a separate network for the Nigerian Internet that will give the government control over social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. This is similar to the internet filtering system China operates, called the Great Firewall.

According to CFR, “the Great Firewall, is the centre of the government’s online censorship and surveillance effort. Its methods include bandwidth throttling, keyword filtering, and blocking access to certain websites.”

The Reporters Without Borders states that the firewall makes large-scale use of Deep Packet Inspection technology, an advanced method of examining and managing network traffic. The Nigerian government seeks to establish the Nigerian Internet, which it will also control likewise.

A digital security expert told FIJ that China is the only country that deploys total Deep Packet Inspection over its cyberspace. The technology involves making use of lots of manpower.

The internet firewall will also give the Nigerian government power to block VPN, which many Nigerians are using to access Twitter. The CAC is the central internet regulator, censor, oversight and control agency for China and answers to the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission, headed by Xi Jinping, China’s President. Since its existence, the CAC, which also gives approval to data by Chinese companies outside of China, regulates usernames on the Chinese Internet, licences news information services, and bans comments that “harm national security” or “harm the nations honour interest”.

The Nigerian government has in the past few years sought a way to control freedom of expression online. Towards the end of 2015, the Frivolous Petition Bill targeting online and print media as well as regulating social media posts was introduced into the Senate just 10 months after Buhari’s ascent to power. In 2019, lawmakers introduced two bills: the National Commission for the Prohibition of Hate Speech bill and the Protection from Internet Falsehood and Manipulation and other Related Offences bill, prompting public outcry that meant they were not passed into law.

Source: https://fij.ng/article/exclusive-presidency-meets-with-chinas-cyber-regulator-to-build-nigerian-internet-firewall/

What a country!
Blocking access to the internet is a priority over fighting insecurity.

Oh boy

Here it comes... Communism
After internet what next? Media ? Television? Restrict us to only Islamic programs ?

Implement sharia in media ?

Where are we going with all this? We should be building bridges not walls

lol if Nigeria still dey exist afta 2023 the kain Damage wey d next president go jam e no go get option pass make he use all the past Leader du Ritual...

Even the Dead ones e go use derr bone d one wey don turn dust e go use derr dust....

Cos this Buhari wan make sure say e damage d country beyond redemption.....

We need censorship and we need it now before another problem adds to what Nigerians are facing

If ordinary FM radio can cause Rwanda genocide then Nigeria must be scared of fake news


.

[s]

Coldshisha:
We need censorship and we need it now before another problem adds to what Nigerians are facing

[/s]

[s]

Coldshisha:
We need censorship and we need it now before another problem adds to what Nigerians are facing

If ordinary FM radio can cause Rwanda genocide then Nigeria must be scared of fake news

[/s]

My problem with comments like this Is that they are not properly thought out in a bid to comment on first page .

The ability to think and critically analyse issses is lost in being a talkative.

Do you even understand the difference between censorship and totalitarian acts ?

I doubt you have the capacity to engage me in an Intelligent conversation

Stupidity....










#cowseverywhere

Belial06:
[s][/s]

My problem with comments like this Is that they are not properly thought out in a bid to comment on first page

Help yourself with your personal problems by commenting what you feel is a better version of my opinion or simply seek help without going about looking for whose comments to attack

Same hypocrite that rushed to the mods everytime his feelings get hurt with facts still don't want regulation of social media

Same hypocrite lambasted Sapphire for stating her own opinion without violating any rules

Another one

Bad news for the freedom of speech

The kind of wall they want to build only exists in dictatorships, not in democracies,

Lol... All for nothing.
I'm kuku sure this is not 1983/84.
FG will collect from this coconut head generation!
Everything go soon escalate. Make una rest.

If you know you know

And so it starts.

They haven't sort help on insecurity o, they haven't sort help on how to improve our economy and reduce inflation, they haven't sort help on better health care.

See wetin the clowns wey una elect carry for head.

I go talk am here again, God go punish those of una wey elect this government.

Ko ni da fun yin.

This is a bad idea
China is phoney and would end up spying on the data of citizens for their own benefits
Huawei phones,Tiktok and some of their apps has been banned in some countries for this....
They can't run to America either, because they're not in support... confusion everywhere..

We can develop things on our own, even if it means trial and error.. at the end of the day we'll still pay billions for this.

May God help African leaders and the citizens, they just can't do anything on their own.

Like I knew this was going to happen, China no send anybody

Chai... Just look at the efforts and resources that goes into banning twitter. Firewalls

If half of it goes into tackling killer Fulani herdsmen and bandits Nigeria will enjoy peace.

But instead FG provides VVIP protection to killer Fulani herdsmen and appeal to bandits because FG don’t see them as threat.

Southerners don suffer, take it or leave it northerners own this country

Lol, they trust China more than US and the West

Dictatorship

Kai mana
This Bubu tweet wey dem delete pain am die

they couldn't meet n ask international bodies for the rising insecurity and kidnappings o...jus continue bcoz 2023 isnt far..
am waiting to see APC campaigns on tweeter dt time....we go see who laughs last

Belial06:
[s][/s]

My problem with comments like this Is that they are not properly thought out in a bid to comment on first page .

The ability to think and critically analyse issses is lost in being a talkative.

Do you even understand the difference between censorship and totalitarian acts ?

I doubt you have the capacity to engage me in an Intelligent conversation

.

This Government has no bearing.

China were ban winnie.the.pooh because people say the President resemble am

Ko le wek

Abacha no do reach this one.

We pray and hope that the incoming government for 2023 will Sanu wa and far better than this heartless fulanis