Former US President Donald Trump has congratulated Nigeria on its decision to block Twitter – and that other countries should do the same.

“Congratulations to the country of Nigeria, who just banned Twitter because they banned their President,” he said in a statement.

The former president encouraged other countries to follow suit and ban Facebook and Twitter “for not allowing free and open speech”.

Donald Trump was banned from Twitter and Facebook in January after being accused of posting messages inciting mobs to storm the US Capitol. Five people died following the incident.

In his statement, he wondered whether he should have banned Facebook and Twitter during his presidency.

“Who are they to dictate good and evil if they themselves are evil? Perhaps I should have done it while I was President. But [Facebook founder Mark] Zuckerberg kept calling me and coming to the White House for dinner telling me how great I was,” he said.

Nigeria last Friday suspended Twitter from operating in the country. It cited the “persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence”.

The ban came days after a tweet by President Muhammadu Buhari was removed for breaching the site’s rules.

It has sparked angry reactions from many Nigerians and Western powers who term it as a threat to civil liberties.

Both sides now say they are in discussions to resolve the dispute.