|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Claim: A Facebook user, Karim Bah, alleges that President Julius Maada Bio attended the funeral ceremony of the late Liverpool football star Diogo Jota in Portugal.
Verdict: False! DUBAWA’s investigations show the claim is false. Also, a Facebook Messenger response from the Director of Communications at President Bio’s office, Myk Berewa, debunked the claim, stating, “That’s not true.”
Full Text
On Wednesday, July 9, 2025, a Facebook user named Karim Bah (a former opposition candidate in the 2018 parliamentary elections in Sierra Leone) claimed on his Facebook page that President Julius Maada Bio attended the funeral ceremony of the late football star Diogo Jota, who, before his demise, was playing professional football for Liverpool in the English Premier League (EPL).
The viral claim on Mr. Bah’s Facebook wall reads in parts,
“As Chairman of ECOWAS, Maada Bio, don fly for go attend funeral of late Liverpool player Diego Jota.”
Translation: “As the Chairman of ECOWAS, President Maada Bio has flown to attend the funeral ceremony of late Liverpool player, Diego Jotta.”
The post, which is accompanied by an image of President Bio standing at the door of the flight and waving at onlookers, can easily convince anyone who comes across the photo posted on the claimant’s Facebook account.
Mr. Bah, a strong social advocate and popular politician, boasts over 2.5k Facebook followers, most of whom trust and have confidence in his posts. Also, the image attached to the post by Mr. Bah, with the ‘logo’ of the Office of the President, with inscriptions, reads thus,
“Sierra Leone President departs Freetown for Diego Jota’s funeral in Portugal.”
Against this backdrop, DUBAWA decided to verify the claim in a bid to set the records straight.
Verification
DUBAWA contacted the claimant via his Facebook page to get his comment concerning his viral claim, but he has not responded.
Our online research found no proof of President Bio’s presence at the funeral ceremony of the late football star. Video footage from international news agencies, including the Catholic News Agency and the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), didn’t mention or capture any African leader’s presence at the funeral ceremony of the Portuguese football star.
Also, DUBAWA visited the Office of the President: Julius Maada Bio’s official Facebook page. However, no update was found in connection with the First Gentleman of the Land’s attendance at Jotta’s funeral ceremony. President Bio could not have attended Jotta’s funeral ceremony, and his office remained silent.
DUBAWA also contacted Myk Berewa — Director of Communications at the Office of the President — who strongly refuted the viral claim. “That’s not true,” he said, adding, “President Bio is here. As of today, 9th July 2025.”
Image capturing chat on Facebook Messenger between Researcher and Myk Berewa — Image source: Researcher: Fayia J. Moseray
Conclusion
DUBAWA’s investigation regarding the viral claim that President Bio attended the funeral ceremony of the late Liverpool player, Diogo Jota, is false!
