The Socio Economic Rights and Accountability Project has called on Senate President Godswill Akpabio and House Speaker Tajudeen Abbas to withdraw the Nigeria Data Protection Amendment Bill 2026, arguing that the legislation amounts to an indirect attempt to regulate social media and expand government control over online speech.

The organization said the bill, sponsored by Senator Ned Nwoko, would impose stricter compliance requirements on digital platforms. In a letter dated July 18, 2026 and signed by Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare, the group said the proposal poses a serious threat to freedom of expression and digital rights in Nigeria.

According to the group, the bill would require social media companies, data controllers and data processors operating in the country to maintain physical offices locally, while empowering the Nigeria Data Protection Commission to suspend or prohibit any entity that fails to comply within 30 days.

SERAP argued that requiring local offices would expose digital platforms to greater government pressure and make censorship easier, describing the bill as a backdoor route to regulating social media through corporate localization rules rather than transparent, constitutionally sound regulation.

The group warned that the proposed law could grant regulators sweeping power to remove digital platforms from Nigeria entirely, affecting millions who rely on social media for communication, business, education and civic participation. Drawing a comparison to the government’s 2021 suspension of Twitter, SERAP said the bill could produce a similar outcome through a different mechanism, since it would let regulators bar platforms from operating in the country altogether.