Following reports that its Twitter handle has been hacked into, and is being used for “questionable activities”, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has announced the debut of its newly-designed website and other official social media accounts. They are under listed:
Website: www.officialapcng.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/OfficialAPCNg
Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/officialapcng/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/officialapcng/
YouTube: Official APC Nigeria
The newly-designed website features a streamlined and uncluttered design, offering user-friendly functionality and rich content. This website as well as the official social media accounts offers quick and easy access to essential information and features to keep party members, the media and indeed the general public abreast of party activities, the APC-led federal government and APC-governed states.
APC’s new website will be regularly updated with news on Party accomplishments and events.
Visitors are encouraged to explore the new website and sign up for APC’s mailing list and newsletter to receive direct emails on the Contact Us page. Also follow the APC on the listed social media accounts.
TheNewsGuru.com had published a story, Saturday, on the confusion over APC’s Twitter handle. It reads:
Twitter erupted in confusion on Saturday after the Spokesman of the All Progressives Congress, Bolaji Abdullahi disowned the party’s supposed official account, @apcnigeria following reports that the account was ‘sold’ as reported in some quarters in the media or hacked as TheNewsGuru.com verifiably reports.
Recall that this controversial Twitter account, @apcnigeria was the handle the party used in campaigning for office in the 2015 presidential elections, where President Muhammadu Buhari emerged the winner.
Apart from aiding President Muhammadu Buhari journey into Aso Villa, the account which boasts of over 700,000 followers has being a platform where the ruling party shares information to Nigerians.
So what went wrong?
A white man who goes by the name Justin Sun on his Twitter handle is alleged to have claimed that someone he identified as “Nigerian president” sold the official Twitter handle of the ruling All Progressives Congress to him for $2,000.
A rabidly circulating tweet with suspicious verified Twitter handle, “Justin Sun @APCNigeria,” shows one Mr. Justin Sun threatening to reveal all the correspondences between him and a supposed president of Nigeria if his demands were not met.
In the Tweet allegedly posted at 7.52pm on Saturday, April 14, 2018, Justin Sun, who resides in San Francisco, state of California, USA, asked to be paid $100,000 for him to shut up about how APC’s Twitter handle became his personal possession.
The trending tweet supposedly by Justin Sun reads: “If the president of Nigeria does not pay me $100K, I’ll post all the correspondence here, and the whole world will see it.”
According to the information available on Mr Justin Sun’s available verified Twitter handle, he is the founder of Tron Foundation and he is one of Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 entrepreneurs and the First Millennial Graduate of Hupan University Founded By Jack Ma of the Alibaba Group.
“Justin Sun graduated from Hupan University as the program’s first millennial graduate. Sun received his diploma from Principal Jack Ma and updated him on the latest developments at #TRON. Sun also expressed his gratitude towards Principal Jack Ma for his unwavering support. #TRX,” another information on Justin Sun’s Twitter handle said.
Suffice to say, a perusal of Mr. Justin Sun’s official Twitter handle showed that his last post was seven hours ago, and he seemed to be unaware of the controversies surrounding his Twitter handle.
Who manages the APC Twitter account…was it hacked or sold?
In a phone conversation with TheNewsGuru.com, the manager of the APC twitter handle, Phillip Obin, confirmed the account was hacked and not sold.
“The account was hacked, but I am currently engaging Twitter to help restore it…we have gotten an assurance that the challenge will be sorted out soonest” Source said.
Obin is an All Progressives Congress (APC) member, and the party’s chairmanship candidate, Biase LGA in Cross River state.
APC distances the party from the hacked Twitter account?
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has disowned the Twitter account that was recently taken over by hackers.
Reacting to the takeover, the party’s spokesman, Bolaji Abdullahi wrote on his official Twitter page, “For the umpteenth time, @APCNigeria IS NOT the official Twitter handle of the All Progressives Congress (APC). In several official statements, we have disclaimed that handle. We view this latest development as a case of criminal impersonation.”