By Ikugbadi Oluwasegun
Festus Ogun, Human Rights Lawyer has sued the Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the Governor of Lagos State for blocking him on X.
Festus Ogun disclosed this in a post on Friday where, he said, “I have filed a lawsuit at the Federal High Court against the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, for blocking me on his verified X (formerly “Twitter”) handle.
“In 2021, I noticed that the Governor blocked me on his official X handle @jidesanwoolu owing to my constructive criticisms of his policies and demand for accountability in respect of the October 2020 #EndSARS Massacre that was perpetrated under his watch.
“It is my case that blocking me on X has prevented me from accessing public updates and receiving information about policies and governance in Lagos (since he uses the X account to post only official, policies and governance matters) which constitutes a violation of my right to receive information without interference, subsumed under the right to freedom of expression.
“Also, by blocking me owing to my criticism of his administration and my demand for transparency, the Governor has violated my fundamental rights to freedom from discrimination on the basis of political viewpoint or opinion. I invited the Nigerian court to be persuaded by the decision of the US District Court in Knight First Amendment Institute v Trump where President Trump was found to be in violation of the 1st Amendment when he blocked US citizens for criticising him on Twitter.
“I feel haunted, traumatized and emotionally disturbed by the knowledge that the Governor of Lagos State, where I live and work as a legal practitioner, has targeted, singled me out and blocked me on X. Intolerance to criticism and accountability is unconstitutional and undemocratic.
“This Suit is not just about me. I have filed this lawsuit in furtherance of public interest and with the hope that it sets a precedent in our digital rights jurisprudence.
“Nigerian authorities continue to crackdown on dissents, critics, journalists, bloggers and vocal citizens on social media, using arrests, detention, surveillance, collusion with big techs and outright blocking, as weapons. That narrative must stop and we have a collective duty to invite the judiciary to put an end to it.”
