Nigeria, Jan. 25 -- Public debate in Nigeria is increasingly shaped not just by facts but also by emotions, identity, and organised outrage. My recent short Facebook post reacting to The New York Times' (NYT) report on an Onitsha-based trader and activist triggered an avalanche of hostile responses - many from individuals identifying as Igbo and largely sympathetic to the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the quest for Biafra.

What shocked me was not the disagreement; that is part of democratic discourse. It was the coordinated pattern of abuse, libellous language use, and unrelated propaganda, even after I deleted some of the very offensive posts of online cabals. A closer look revealed what I often call social media warriors from ...