CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF TWITTER BAN ON GOVERNMENT TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Need help with a related project topic or New topic? Send Us Your Topic
DOWNLOAD THE COMPLETE PROJECT MATERIAL
CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF TWITTER BAN ON GOVERNMENT TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of The Study
Transparency and accountability are essential for the smooth operation of a modern democracy and the promotion of societal well-being. Many powers are allocated to governmental authorities in most countries. The delegators, that is, society at large, must then be assured that this transfer of power is not only successful, but also not abused.
Transparency guarantees that information is available to measure the performance of the authorities and to guard against any potential abuse of power. Transparency, in this sense, serves to achieve accountability, which means that authorities may be held accountable for their acts.
Without openness and accountability, trust between a government and those it controls will be absent. As a result, societal instability and an unfavourable atmosphere for economic growth would prevail.
Transparency can be thought of as a composite construct made up of several components, including external accessibility and active disclosure. It has been defined in several ways, but the majority of formulations consider visibility to be basic.
Transparency can be expanded to encompass completeness, comprehension, or inferability of information, but it ultimately starts with “the availability of information about an actor that allows the other actors to monitor the workings or performance of the first actor.
“Governments can encourage transparency by actively providing information about their operations and choices and then making it accessible, monitorable, and evaluable to citizens.
Government openness is seen by citizens when government information is publicly available. Citizens will not perceive government openness unless they are adequately informed of government operations and decisions, even if information is available (Zavattaro, S. M., & Sementelli, A. J. 2015).
Nigeria’s government is one of those that uses social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and other social networking sites to inform citizens about government policies and programmes. The recent restriction on one of the most popular social networking sites, Twitter, has caused considerable concern among its residents.
Twitter is a microblogging and social networking website in the United States where users post and engage with messages known as “tweets.” Unregistered users can only view tweets, while registered users can post, like, and retweet them. Twitter is accessed via its website interface or its mobile device application software.
In the absence of timely information, such as that shared on these social networking sites, citizens may be pushed to lose faith in the government’s transparency, which invariably sends a message that the government is not accountable to the citizens, which is contrary to true democratic principles.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The Nigerian government officially banned Twitter from operating in Nigeria on June 4, 2021, after the social media platform deleted tweets made by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari warning the south-eastern people of Nigeria, predominantly occupied by the Igbo people, of a potential repeat of the 1967 Biafran Civil War (CNN 2021).
The Nigerian authorities said that the removal of the President’s tweets played a role in their decision, but it was ultimately based on “a litany of problems with Nigeria’s social media platform, where misinformation and fake news spread through it has had real-world, violent consequences.”
Despite the fact that Amnesty International, the British and Canadian missions, the Swedish Embassy in Nigeria, and domestic organisations such as the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) have all condemned the ban, its implications are likely to have a significant negative impact on the profitability of Nigerian telecommunications companies.
According to the Social-Media-Poll-Report (2020), over 120 million Nigerians have access to the internet and social networking sites, and approximately 40 million of them — 20% of the population — have a Twitter account.
Thus, the banning of Twitter in Nigeria invariably means that one of the many social media platforms through which citizens are informed about government policies and programmes has been obstructed,
sending a lot of messages to the masses about the level of transparency and accountability of the Buhari-led administration. As a result, this study will investigate the impact of the Twitter ban on government openness and accountability.
1.3 objectives of The study
The primary goal of this research is to investigate the impact of the Twitter ban on government openness. The research specifically aims to:
Examine the significance of social media for government openness.
To investigate the level of government transparency via the Twitter platform prior to the suspension.
To see if the current Twitter ban affects citizens’ perceptions of the government’s transparency and accountability.
1.4 Research Hypothesis
The following hypothesis guides the research.
HO1: The prohibition on Twitter in Nigeria has no detrimental influence on citizens’ perceptions of government transparency.
HO2: There is no statistically significant link between the Twitter prohibition and government accountability.
1.5 Significance of the research
This study provides a critical examination of the impact of the Twitter ban on government openness and accountability. It is important to emphasise that the findings and theoretical components of this work will be useful to citizens, political stakeholders, and the government.
The study will enlighten stakeholders and the government on the need to reassess the current Twitter ban, knowing how this will affect the perception of its citizens on the level of transparency and accountability,
as the effect of this may jeopardise the true tenet of democracy. Furthermore, the study will be extremely beneficial to students, researchers, and other individuals who may be interested in gathering or carrying out any research relating to the issue under study.
1.6 Scope of The Study
This study’s scope includes a critical analysis of the impact of Twitter’s prohibition on government openness and accountability. As a result, the study is confined to Twitter users in Lagos State.
1.7 limitations of the Research
The following variables are identified as limitations during the course of this investigation.
Inadequate financing impedes the researcher’s efficiency in locating important resources, literature, or information, as well as in data collecting (internet, questionnaire, and interview).
Time constraint- The researcher will conduct this investigation alongside other academic activities. As a result, the time spent researching is minimised.
1.8 Definition of Terms
Twitter is a microblogging and social networking website that allows users to post and interact with messages known as “tweets.” Unregistered users can only view tweets, while registered users can post, like, and retweet them.
Twitter Ban: This is the official halt in Twitter operations ordered by the Federal Government of Nigeria on June 5th, 2021, until the proprietors of the social network meet the newly defined standards imposed by the government of Nigeria.
Transparency: In science, engineering, business, the humanities, and other social contexts, transparency operates in such a way that it is easy for others to see what activities are taken.
Accountability: In terms of ethics and governance, accountability is synonymous with answerability, blameworthiness, culpability, and the expectation of account-giving.
REFERENCE
CNN (2021) reports that “Nigeria bans Twitter after the company deletes President Buhari’s tweet.” Retrieved on the 5th of June, 2021.
2020 Social-Media-Poll-Report Google search yielded the 2020 Global Social Media Market Survey report.
“Nigeria suspends Twitter after the social media platform freezes the president’s account,” Washington Post (2021). ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved on the 5th of June, 2021.
Sementelli, A. J., and S. M. Zavattaro (2015). A critical assessment of government social media adoption: Introducing omnipresence. 257-264 in Government Information Quarterly, 31. doi:10.1016/j.giq.2013.10.007.
Need help with a related project topic or New topic? Send Us Your Topic