By George Omagbemi
A coalition of civil society organisations has called for an urgent and independent investigation into reported disruptions to TikTok access in parts of northern Nigeria.
The groups said users in Kaduna, Kebbi, Kano and Sokoto have experienced difficulties loading videos, viewing content and uploading materials through ordinary mobile-data connections since around September 14. Some users have reportedly regained access through VPNs.
However, the coalition stressed that its preliminary findings have not established the cause of the disruption. It said the problem could involve a technical failure, network-routing issue, TikTok-side malfunction, traffic-management measure or an intentional restriction.
The organisations are calling on the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), NITDA, Office of the National Security Adviser, telecommunications operators and TikTok to investigate the matter and publicly disclose their findings.
They also want independent technical testing to determine whether DNS interference, blocking, throttling, routing anomalies or application-specific filtering is involved.
The coalition further urged authorities to disclose any government directive affecting TikTok access, including its legal basis, scope, duration and purpose.
The groups said unexplained disruption of digital platforms could affect communication, journalism, business and civic participation, while stressing that the cause should be established through transparent technical investigation rather than speculation.
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