On April 20, 2023, microblogging platform Twitter removed the blue verification badges from the accounts of Nigerian political figures and celebrities.
Among those affected were the president-elect and flagbearer of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, and the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi.
The mass removal of verification badges also affected reporters/journalists, celebrities, and others.
The development is in line with Twitter CEO Elon Musk’s announcement that users enjoying free verified Twitter accounts would lose their verification badges on April 20, 2023, if they did not pay the new subscription fee.
It is unclear whether the affected individuals failed to pay the subscription fee or if other factors were at play.
In a related development, Twitter also removed the verification badges of popular Nigerian musicians Davido, Wizkid, and Burna Boy.
