As the year 2016 comes to a glorious end, the Editorial Board of SIGNAL has selected the most influential persons in Nigeria’s Twitter constituency that had the most impact on socio-political and general issues. Compiled by SIGNAL’s own Brian Jonah Dennis, this list is in no particular order.
1 – @AbdulAbmj
The House of Representatives member rose to social media popularity when he exposed the budget padding scandal which fingered principal officers in Nigeria’s House of Representatives. His allegations continue to shape social commentary on corruption in high places long after he was suspended from the House.
2 – @Amaka_Ekwo
Love her or not, this lady is one of the strongest voices on Nigerian Twitter. Her pro-Biafran timeline won her a lot of followers this year making her a rallying force for many who believe in the Biafra struggle. She really easily strolled into this list.
3 – @AkaEbube
Ebube is the undisputed King of “Trolls” against Buhari and the ruling APC government but what sets him apart is not the criticism of the government in power; it is his unique style of writing which adds humorous wit to the most serious topics and forces you to laugh whether you agree with him or not. Funny how he remains anonymous on Twitter even after his wedding where pictures were taken and posted online. Only AkaEbube can successfully pull off a stunt like that.
4 – @AdeyanjuDeji
The former PDP Director of New Media started the year as a strong voice of hope for the resurrection of Nigeria’s opposition PDP amid an internal leadership crisis in the party. Adeyanju, an ardent critic of President Buhari contested for the Deputy National Publicity Secretary and National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, both times the party’s conventions failed to hold. His burst of controversial tweets once caused a major uproar on the streets of political Twitter and some suggested that he might join the APC but Deji has dismissed the rumours and has continued to be an ardent critic of APC and President Buhari’s policies.
5 – @Chydee
Chidi Okereke makes the list as an influential trend starter. From sports to entertainment, Chidi’s opinions on issues can kickstart controversy and drama. Although he stays away from politics for now, we know his influence straddles into that domain as well.
6 – @I_pissvodka
Mr Ibe’s TL is never boring and he really doesn’t make much effort to keep it that way. It’s just in his nature. His wedding and childbirth in the same year got a lot of people talking. Apart from his tweets which generate a lot of traffic on the timeline, Ibe’s story of transformation this year from a bachelor to a married father of a beautiful daughter puts him on this list.
7 – @GarShehu
Garba Shehu, the presidential spokesman has been in the centre of drama throughout this year because of his utterances and the issues he responds to and ignores. There is usually drama to follow whenever he tweets and he never fails to disappoint. He is however on this list for that very reason – that he never fails to create drama when he tweets.
8 – @Omojuwa
Omojuwa is a favourite account for many Nigerian Twitter users. The year 2016 has been a bit quiet and less controversial for him compared to the previous two years when he played a lead role as a staunch government critic. But Omojuwa always has something up his sleeves to drop and that’s why he’s on this list.
9 – @cchukudebelu
The 2nd Niger Bridge Igbo activist makes this list as a major influence on socio-political issues that affect the Igbo nation and Nigeria at large. He proudly agrees that he’s a bigot and debuted the infamous “The Nigerian intellectual is a fraud”. He has earned a reputation as one of Nigeria’s most cerebral Twitter socio-political analysts.
10 – @ObyEzeks
The former minister, ex-World Bank Vice-President and BBOG advocate had a rough year, from being barred from Aso Rock to having security agents trifle her group’s protests. In all of these, Oby remains unfazed on social media. Sometimes her views conflict with themselves especially with the Modus Operandi of the DSS but that’s just another reason why she’s on this list.
11 – @SolaAdio
The relationship expert is the convener of soul ties. He tweets on sex, love and God and is often controversial with his views which usually spark up endless debates on the timeline. We still have not agreed if it is a woman’s role to cook in the marriage till date and we might never agree.
12 – @LindaIkeji
She is easily the biggest subject of admiration and controversy on Nigerian Twitter. The influential blogger and force behind the Linda Ikeji Blog has broken the Internet severally this year with conversations about her house, cars, dress sense and even much more. She’s the undisputed Queen of Nigerian social media and the influence of her platform cuts across a wide range of subjects!
13 – @DemolaRewaju
Demola’s political philosophy and his writing are equally unique. His analysis on politics is extraordinary as he sees what others do not see. His threads on political history are a favourite read for many and although he is more quiet than he was last year, he still makes this list as his timeline is always rich in political history.
14 – @am_mood1
The great oracle and lawyer had his former handle seized by Twitter, yes, seized. But he came back strongly and even better. His numbered tweets on socio-political issues are always a joy to read and that’s just one of the many reasons he makes this list.
15 – @DeleMomodu
Chief Dele Momodu makes this list not because of his influence in the past Ghanaian elections or because he was a major campaign strategist for John Dramani Mahama. The Chief finds his time to come on Twitter and interact with his followers sometimes dropping political hints and other times igniting robust debates on Nigeria’s political future. When the Chief is not tweeting, he’s posting on Instagram or writing a strong opinion column on his Thisday backpage column, Pendulum and his pieces are such a joy to read.
16 – @NGRWailers
This Twitter persona started as an account to taunt Femi Adesina who first coined the term ‘Wailing Wailers’ in the Nigerian political sphere. The @NGRWailers account has grown into a movement and a voice for a lot of “wailers”. It is largely one of Nigeria’s most influential political Twitter accounts of 2016 and takes a well-deserved spot on this list.
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