The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Prof. Isa Pantami, has stated that the government came up with an Internet Code of Practice to prevent big tech companies from becoming dictators and bigger than the government.
The Minister stated this at Nigeria’s First Content Moderation and Online Safety Summit organised by the Advocacy for Policy and Innovation (API) with the theme “The Challenge for Content Moderation and the Opportunity to Improve Online Safety in Nigeria”, which held in Abuja.
According to him, a democratic republic is not just a form of government but a government that needs vigilance and at times actions to protect and maintain it.
Pantami likened the current big tech executives to Kings, Emperors and Military dictators, adding that there is a “strange power dominating human.”
What the Minister is saying
The Minister, who was represented at the event by the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa, said: “In the Federal Republic of Nigeria, we shouldn’t allow anyone have unaccountable power over others.
“Today looking at the social media incidence before the US election, indicated that Big Tech has more power than the Government. Users are compelled to obey the Big Tech rules because of the restrictions and sanctions in its usage. For example, if you use Twitter there is a limit of the words you can tweet.”
He emphasized that in a democratic setting citizens should have representatives elected by people to write rules rather than a few. According to him “this causes challenges such as the recruitment system being gender biased, or the recognition system being racist, and so on.”
“From the period of John Ballos declaration in 1996, which explains how he predicted a new cyber world without government, to Eric Smith’s comment that cyberspace is an ungoverned space; to 2018 when Mark Zuckerberg said that the real question is neither if there is need for regulation or not, but what is the appropriate regulation?” he queried.
The Minister concluded that those who control the online space must therefore be held accountable. “We need to look at technology as a citizen, how it impacts our life, what the Big Techs should control, and under what conditions, because we believe that today’s technology is central to our social, economic, and political lives.”
What you should know
NITDA in June this year released a draft of the Internet Code of Practice for social media and Internet companies. The code has been attracting criticisms from Nigerians.
Part of the Code dictates that internet platforms including social media must:
- Act expeditiously upon receiving a notice from a user, or an authorised government agency of the presence of an unlawful content on its Platform. A Platform must acknowledge the receipt of the complaint and take down the content within 24 hours.
- Act expeditiously to remove, disable, or block access to non-consensual content that exposes a person’s private areas, full or partial nudity, sexual act, deepfake, or revenge porn, where such content is targeted to harass, disrepute, or intimidate an individual. A Platform must acknowledge the receipt of the complaint and take down the content within 24 hours.
- Disclose the identity of the creator of information on its Platform when directed to do so by a Court order. Provided that an order of this nature shall apply for the purpose of preventing, detecting, investigating, or prosecuting an offence concerning the sovereignty and integrity of Nigeria, public order, security, diplomatic relationships, felony, incitement of an offence relating to any of the above or in relation to rape, child abuse, or sexually explicit material.
- Where the first creator of the message in question is located outside Nigeria, the first creator of that information in Nigeria shall be deemed to be the first creator. Exercise due diligence to ensure that no unlawful content is uploaded to their Platform. Where a Platform receives a notice from a user or any authorised government agency that an unlawful content has been uploaded, such Platform is required to take it down and ensure it stays down.
This is a nice development if it can be implemented.