Why is President Tinubu’s Twitter checkmark not grey yet?

The blue checkmark used to be the only visual identity the social media company created as a verification system for all high-profile accounts.

But following Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter (now known as X) in April 2022, the company introduced colour-coded checkmarks to denote different profiles.

While the blue tick remains as the primary checkmark for individuals, who are willing to pay between $8–$11 monthly subscription depending on location, Twitter introduced secondary badges for Presidents, Vice Presidents, Prime Ministers, Deputy Prime Ministers, government entities and multilateral organisations.

Twitter also created a gold badge for businesses and like the blue tick, companies are expected to pay $1,000 per month as a subscription fee.

For political leaders, eligible government and multilateral accounts are free to apply for the grey tick but it’s not clear if the checkmark attracts monthly subscriptions like the blue and the gold badges.

According to Twitter, “The grey checkmark indicates that an account represents a government institution or official, or a multilateral organization. Specifically, eligible government institutions include national and local crisis response, public safety, law enforcement, and regulatory agencies, embassies, and other major national-level agencies.”

However, since the introduction of the multicolour badges, the verification ticks of many heads of state and government officials of many countries including African nations have turned grey.

For example, the Twitter accounts of the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, Kenyan President, William Ruto, and Stanley Kakubo, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Zambia, all have grey checkmarks that identify them as political authorities on Twitter.

Other world leaders with grey badges on Twitter include the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak, the President of the United States, Joe Bidden, the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau, the President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo, the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, the President of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa and the President of the Republic of Benin, Patrice Talon. 

On the contrary, the verified account of President Tinubu created in 2012 with 2.2 million followers still carries the blue tick four months into his administration.

While his counterparts all over the world have a distinct badge that sets them apart from other users of the platform, it is worth noting that the blue checkmark is not in consonance with President Tinubu’s Twitter header which reads, “President, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Federal Republic of Nigeria. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR.”

Over the years, Twitter has become a powerful outlet for government officials and agencies to disseminate information and interact with citizens. In Nigeria, a large percentage of the youth population relies on the platform to advance political conversations and engagements.

It is, therefore, not enough for the Nigerian President to be present on Twitter, it is equally important that his presence on the platform conforms with his status like his counterparts in other countries.