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By John Ogunsemore
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, said Nigeria is considering vetting the social media of Americans applying for a Nigerian visa.
Tuggar disclosed this in an interview with TheCable published on Sunday.
He was reacting to a question on the recent decision by the United States Mission in Nigeria to introduce vetting of social media as part of the requirements for granting visas.
In August, the US Mission directed Nigerian visa applicants to provide a comprehensive list of their social media profiles on the DS-160 visa application form.
It warned that omitting the information could lead to visa denials and potential ineligibility for future US visas.
Reacting, Tuggar stated that the principle of reciprocity guides Nigeria’s foreign policy actions.
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He emphasised that the nation was considering reciprocal action for Americans seeking Nigerian visas.
He said, “Well, visa policy works on the principle of reciprocity. So, routinely, we evaluate our position and see whether the visa policy being directed towards us is one that is being reciprocated or not and then we make adjustments accordingly.
“We’re working, of course, on this with the Ministry of Interior in particular because visa issuance is under the purview of the Nigeria immigration Service, as you know.
“But, of course, it touches heavily on foreign policy implementation.”
Asked if Nigeria would reciprocate the US social media policy, Tuggar said, “It is something that we’re looking at.”
He added, “This building is the custodian of so much in terms of history. It’s older than Nigeria itself. This is where foreign policy analysis takes place, and we have to evaluate and look at every situation before we come up with a position.
“So, foreign policy analysis is going to play a very important role in terms of the decisions we take and the decisions and we recommend for Mr. President to take.”
