CLAIM 1: A Facebook post alleges that Buhari blames Nigerians for the “crime” in South-Africa; adding that he promised South African President to “tackle” said Nigerian perpetrators.
MISLEADING: Buhari did not blame Nigerians for the crime in South Africa. However, he did say he would help tackle the few Nigerians engaging in crime.
On the 9th of September 2019, The Republican News posted on its Facebook page with Chidi Cali as the source. The post read: “Buhari blames Nigerians living in South Africa for the crime happening in the country. He made a promise to South African president Ramaphosa that he will tackle the Nigerians”.
Additionally, in what we could only describe as feigning authenticity, this screenshot from a report by Premium Times was attached.
Verification
Originally, the premise reported by Premium Times expressed the President’s intent to collaborate with South African authorities. The aim apparently was to find a solution to the few Nigerians who are in a way involved in criminal activities in the country. Criminal activities which were said to have sparked the attacks on foreigners/Nigerians at large.
In another report by Premium Times, the same sentiment is expressed about President Buhari via his special envoy to South Africa.
“Nigeria stands ready to assist South Africa in establishing the root causes of and developing sustainable solutions to the challenges concerned…”
Ahmed Abubakar
Unsurprisingly, there is no line in the reports by Premium Times to connote or denote the President blamed Nigerians for crime in the diaspora. Hence, the claim is a mixture of accurate and inaccurate claims.
Conclusion
The claim is MISLEADING. This is because although Buhari said he would help tackle the few Nigerians engaging in crime, he did not blame Nigerians for the crime in South Africa.
