NBA lacks locus standi to challenge twitter ban — NCC tells court, asks court to decline jurisdiction
By Joseph Ayinde
The Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, has challenged the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, Lagos, to assume jurisdiction on the suit filed by the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, on behalf of members of the NBA and other Twitter users.
The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) had sued President Muhammadu Buhari and the NCC over the suspension of Twitter in Nigeria.
The Association, through its legal team led by Charles Mekwunye, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, urged the court to rule that the ban on Twitter amounted to “a violent breach of the applicant’s right to freedom of expression and the press, guaranteed under sections 39 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended 2011), articles 9 of the African Chater on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, 1983 as well as Articles 19 of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights”.
Sued along with President Buhari and the NCC in the suit marked FHC/L/CS/613/2021 are the Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, and the Minister of Communications and Culture, Lai Mohammed.
In the Preliminary Objection sighted by THENIGERIALAWYER(TNL), the NCC urged the court to decline jurisdiction on the basis that “the Plaintiff has failed to comply with a condition precedent to filing an action against the 4th Respondent to with; service of a Pre-action notice in contravention of Section 142(3&4) of the Nigerian Communications Act,2003.” and that “the Applicant lacks the locus standi to institute this action against the 4th Respondent.”
Furthermore, NCC, through its lawyer, Babatunde John Kwame Ogala, SAN, argued that “This action as presently constituted does not disclose any cause of action against the 4th Respondent and robs this court of the jurisdiction to proceed against the 4th Respondent. Where a cause of action does not exist, the Courts’ Jurisdiction cannot be ignited.
“The originating Process is incurably bad and incompetent as it has not been properly franked by a Legal Practitioner who has paid his Practicing Fees for the year and cannot be heard before any Court. The receipt of payment of practising fees attached to the originating process is alien. Payment of practising fees is made to the Supreme Court and never the Nigerian Bar Association.
“The Court lacks Territorial Jurisdiction to entertain this suit having regard to the aggregate set of facts and events thereto, which form the basis of the Plaintiff’s claim, which all occurred in Lagos state on the authority of MAILANTARKI V. TONGO & ORS (2017) LPELR-42467(SC).”
The NCC also urged the court to strike out its name as a party in the suit due to the multiplicity of jurisdictional defects robbing the court of jurisdiction.
In a 25 paragraphs Counter Affidavit in opposition to the NBA’s Originating Summons deposed to by one Bibiresanmi Soetan, a legal assistant in the law firm of Babatunde Ogala & Co., NCC challenged the NBA to prove that Twitter has over 330 million active users worldwide and 40 million are Nigerians. It also denied the NBA’s assertion that President Buhari, Attorney-General of the Federation, Ministry of Information and Culture have Twitter accounts. That NCC on its part has long stopped using the verified Twitter account @NgComCommission
Furthermore, the NCC deposed that “contrary to paragraphs 7 of the affidavit in support of the originating summons, the Applicant can maintain this action for itself only. Consent of its’ members and 40 million Nigerians must be first sought and received before action can lie in their stead.”
The Commission denied banning Twitter. It says, “the 4th Respondent did not ban twitter of www.twitter.com from the Nigerian Cyberspace, rather the 4th Respondent restricted dissemination of content harmful to the peaceful coexistence of the Nigerian State on the platform of its’ licenses for public interest and security, pursuant to its powers under the Nigerian Communications Act, 2003
“That the microblogging or social media website Twitter or www.twitter.com and its owners Twitter Inc or by whatever name called is a United States of America Registered private business concern and was never licensed by the 4th Respondent. Neither was it registered in Nigeria nor a licensee of the 4th Respondent. It also has no operational office in Nigeria to the knowledge of the 4th Respondent…
“That contrary to paragraph 29 of the Affidavit in support of the originating summons, the 4th Respondent has not breached any Fundamental Human Rights and does not intend to do so, the regulation and restriction of dissemination of content harmful to the peaceful coexistence of the Nigerian State on the platform of its’ ”
The Commission also said it did not harass, threaten to harass, or prosecute members of the NBA or other Nigerian users of Twitter.
