New Delhi: As far as geographical blunders go, this one takes the continent.
In a bizarre mix-up, Twitter on Tuesday identified the Norwegian foreign ministry as a Nigeria-affiliated government organisation. The absurdity didn’t stop there. Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere and Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt were also labelled as Nigerian government officials.
The Scandinavian country’s foreign ministry tweeted: “Dear @TwitterSupport, as much as we enjoy our excellent bilateral relations and close alphabetical vicinity, we would much appreciate it if you could label us as Norway.” “P.S that also goes for Prime Minister @jonasgahrstore and Foreign Minister @AHuitfeldt,” it added.
Dear @TwitterSupport, as much as we enjoy our excellent bilateral relations and close alphabetical vicinity with Nigeria, we would much appreciate if you could label us as Norway😉
P.S. That also goes for Prime Minister @jonasgahrstore and Foreign Minister @AHuitfeldt 🇳🇴 pic.twitter.com/wr6cb3yv2W
— Norway MFA (@NorwayMFA) December 13, 2022
Twitter pastes labels and flags for clarity, in order to identify accounts associated with governments.
Social media had a field day Tuesday after the error was detected. Memes raided Twitter’s timeline with many users wondering how the social media platform could make this glaring error. One user dripped sarcasm: “I always find it difficult to tell them apart,” he said, putting up a collage of two very different scenes from the countries. He wrote “Nigeria” below the photo of northern lights over snowy mountain peaks, and “Norway” under the photo of an elephant threatening a pride of lions in a sunny savannah.
Others said the gaffe was symptomatic of Twitter’s bad days under new owner Elon Musk. “Twitter is just falling apart before our eyes. The incompetence of @elonmusk is finally clear to everyone,” said one.
Twitter is just falling apart before our eyes. The incompetence of @elonmusk is finally clear to everyone. pic.twitter.com/77T06hY1nj
— SIVA VAIDHYANATHAN 🦬 🗽🤘🏽 (@sivavaid) December 13, 2022
The error has not yet been corrected.
Jokes aside, Nigeria and Norway have excellent bilateral relations. Norway is working with the African country on the promotion of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals in Nigeria, which deals with issues of health, education, food security, and gender equality. It is also working with Nigeria’s security forces to ensure marine security, peace, and regional stability in Africa, says a report.
Also read: Twitter accounts are now verified with three colours