The Battle for Online Free Speech: Activists, Algorithms, or Authority?
By Shuaib S. Agaka
At this year’s annual Economic Confidential Lecture, Kashifu Inuwa, the Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), called for an inclusive, citizen-centered legal framework to combat cyber attack, online bullying. He emphasized the urgent need for accountability and rights protection in the country’s digital space. Although Inuwa didn’t specify the framework’s details, there are growing concerns about protecting freedom of expression and speech without infringing on others’ integrity.
Across the world, the battle over free speech has shifted from the streets and newspaper columns to the digital arena. Social media platforms, once hailed as liberating spaces for expression, are now contested battlegrounds where governments assert authority and technology companies wrestle with the ideals of open communication. This struggle is not theoretical—it shapes politics, activism, and the daily lives of citizens.
In Nigeria, the case of activist and publisher Omoyele Sowore illustrates how online platforms are viewed as both opportunities and threats. Sowore’s frequent use of X (formerly Twitter) to challenge state authority has repeatedly drawn the ire of government agencies, raising difficult questions about the boundaries of dissent in a fragile democracy. Thousands of miles away, in India, the recurring clashes between the government and X expose another dimension of the struggle: how global platforms reconcile their commitment to free speech with the economic and political pressures of operating in vast markets.
Together, these cases highlight a broader dilemma: when governments regulate online speech, are they exercising legitimate sovereignty or sliding into censorship that corrodes democracy?
Sowore, founder of Sahara Reporters, has long been a critic of Nigeria’s ruling elite. For him, social media offers a direct audience—unfiltered by state-controlled broadcasters or partisan traditional media. For the state, however, his posts represent disruptive forces capable of mobilizing protests, amplifying dissent, and undermining official narratives in real time. This tension is part of a pattern: in 2021, the Buhari administration banned Twitter after the platform deleted a presidential tweet, cutting off millions of Nigerians from digital discourse for seven months. Though the ban was eventually lifted, it came with new frameworks of government oversight, signaling that the era of unfettered online freedom was over.
In India, the world’s largest democracy, social media platforms face equally intense pressure. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government frequently issues takedown orders against content critical of its policies, protests, or opposition voices. Officials argue such actions are needed to maintain public order, but critics view them as increasingly blatant efforts to silence dissent. Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter complicated matters further. Though Musk brands himself a “free speech absolutist,” X has repeatedly complied with India’s censorship demands to protect its market access. In 2023, for instance, the platform restricted posts relating to farmers’ protests and criticism of Modi’s government—decisions that drew accusations of corporate hypocrisy.
The battle intensified on September 24, 2025, when India’s High Court ruled that platforms must fully comply with government takedown orders, even if the content is lawful under international human rights standards. This landmark ruling aligned judicial authority with executive power, stripping platforms of the ability to push back and leaving Indian users with even narrower protections for digital expression.
At the heart of these conflicts lies the critical question: who governs speech in the digital age? Governments argue that sovereignty gives them the right to regulate all communication within their borders, including online speech. Technology companies counter that such regulation often amounts to censorship and undermines the global promise of the internet. Both sides claim to act in the “public interest”—governments by suppressing dissent in the name of security, and platforms by protecting open discourse. The line between legitimate regulation and outright censorship grows thinner by the day.
The implications are troubling. In Nigeria, Sowore’s criticism of government corruption is framed as incitement, drawing threats of legal sanctions. In India, the High Court ruling effectively turns political speech into a matter of governmental discretion. Neither country’s measures are neutral; they disproportionately target opposition voices, activists, and independent journalists, while leaving pro-government narratives largely untouched.
This struggle is not unique to Nigeria or India. Across the globe, from Russia and Turkey to even Western democracies, governments are testing the limits of digital regulation. The rise of fragmented, country-specific rules—the so-called “splinternet”—is eroding the universality of online expression.
For platforms, the trade-offs are stark. Compliance secures market access but risks eroding credibility and alienating users. Defiance protects principles but invites fines, bans, or outright expulsion. For activists, journalists, and citizens, the stakes are even higher: speaking out online can mean being silenced digitally, prosecuted legally, or intimidated physically.
The path forward is complex. Transparency reports, public disclosure of government requests, independent oversight, and regional frameworks on digital rights could help strike a balance. But these solutions are difficult to enforce, especially where governments and corporations prioritize power or profit over principle.
Ultimately, the future of free speech online may depend less on governments or platforms and more on the resilience of citizens. Activists, journalists, and ordinary users must remain vigilant, creative, and courageous in defending their voices. Platforms can design algorithms, and governments can pass laws, but it is people who determine whether digital spaces remain arenas of expression or instruments of control.
The digital age has made speech more immediate, more powerful, and more vulnerable than ever before. From Sowore’s posts in Nigeria to censorship rulings in India, the rules of expression are no longer universal but constantly contested. In this climate, safeguarding democratic discourse will require not just legal reforms or corporate pledges, but a global citizenry unwilling to let its voice be erased.
Shuaib S. Agaka is a tech journalist based in Kano.