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Claim: Liberia’s Finance Minister, Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan, has alleged that President Joseph Boakai was the first leader to meet with the Japanese Prime Minister.
Verdict: False! BBC report reveals that Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba met with US President Donald Trump in early February 2025 before meeting Liberia’s President Joseph Boakai in August.
Full Text
Liberia’s Finance and Development Planning Minister, Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan, claimed President Joseph Boakai was the first leader to meet with Japan’s Prime Minister, Shigeru Ishiba..
The Finance Minister’s comment was an apparent reaction to claims about the President’s connections with World leaders and the benefits of international travel.
Minister Ngafuan made the claim during a live appearance on the State Broadcaster, LNTV.
The claim was made one hour and thirty-one minutes into the show. Mr Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan said: “There is this impression that when the President travels, he needs to come with a cup load of money on his head, that is not how it is done. These are engagements. I can tell you, I was part of great meetings. President Boakai was the first leader to have been met by the Prime Minister of Japan, when he started meeting Presidents.”
DUBAWA decided to conduct fact checks as part of our mandate to promote truth in the public discourse.
Verification
The researcher first visited the official page of the Japanese Prime Minister, which revealed that the PM met with U.S. President Donald Trump on February 7, 2024.
Shigeru Ishiba was designated and confirmed by the Japanese parliament in October 2024, becoming the country’s 103rd Prime Minister. However, he resigned less than a year after being appointed. His resignation coincided with Mr Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan’s comment.
The meeting, which took place at the White House, aimed to strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries.
Also, the BBC reported that the Japanese Prime Minister met with U.S. President Donald Trump at the famous White House.
Conclusion
With the confirmation of the Japan Prime Minister’s meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump from the Official page of the Japan Prime Minister and a BBC report, the claim made by Minister Augustine Ngafuan is false.
