Nigeria bans Twitter and embraces India's Koo
The Nigerian government joined Indian-made Koo after the Jack Dorsey-led microblogging site was banned indefinitely in the African country.
June 10, 2021 / 01:18 PM IST
The Nigerian government has signed up on India's micro-blogging alternative Koo
The Nigerian government has joined the Indian microblogging site days after banning Twitter. The American microblogging site was banned after it deleted one of Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari's posts for "violating" the rules of the platform.
Koo's, co-founder, Aprameya Radhakrishna tweeted a ‘warm welcome' to the official handle of the Government of Nigeria. Tagging Mayank Bidawakta, his partner in setting up the app, he expressed delight about the platform ‘spreading wings beyond India’.
A very warm welcome to the official handle of the Government of Nigeria on @kooindia! Spreading wings beyond India now. @mayankbidawatka pic.twitter.com/9ufSOKI7sd— Aprameya R (@aprameya) June 10, 2021
The African country on the Gulf of Guinea accused Twitter of double standards and banned the Jack Dorsey-led company on June 2 for an indefinite period.
Twitter then issued a statement saying they were deeply concerned with the banning of the platform in the country and were working to resolve access for the Nigerian people.
We are deeply concerned by the blocking of Twitter in Nigeria. Access to the free and #OpenInternet is an essential human right in modern society.
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We will work to restore access for all those in Nigeria who rely on Twitter to communicate and connect with the world. #KeepitOn— Twitter Public Policy (@Policy) June 5, 2021
The Nigerian government saw the deletion of the President's tweets as an attempt to undermine the country's corporate existence. Within Nigeria, there were many who opposed Twitter's ban, citing it as a violation of the fundamental right to free speech.
Founded by Aprameya Radhakrishna, Koo, an alternative to Twitter that sprang up during India's own turbulent times with the micro-blogging platform, has slowly started to establish itself as competition. Last month, it announced it acquired $30 million in a series-b funding round led by Tiger Global, bringing its valuation up to $150 million.
As of last month, Koo had six million users and many Indian Government Officials such as Ravi Shankar Prasad, Prakash Javedkar along with Bollywood celebrities like Anupam Kher and prominent sports figures like Heena Sidhu have already joined the platform.
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