Uba Sani during a visit to the families of the kidnapped victims. Photo Source: Uba Sani/Facebook.
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Claim: X and Facebook users shared a video, claiming the Kaduna State governor held a political rally seven days after 176 Christians were kidnapped in the state.
Verdict: Misleading! Although the footage is recent and authentic, it actually shows the residents of Makarfi Local Government Area welcoming the governor as he arrived for the commissioning of a road project in their area. The claim that the video depicts a political rally is inaccurate.
Full Text
X and Facebook users have been sharing a video with claims that the Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani, held a political rally shortly after a mass abduction at a church. This claim (archived here) emerged following the incident and the governor’s subsequent visit to the victims’ families.
The 41-second video, which shows the governor waving from the roof of his jeep while crowds cheered and waved All Progressives Congress (APC) flags, has sparked criticism. Many users have reacted strongly to the footage, labelling the governor’s purported actions as “heartless.”
A user, Dr Mary, questioned why the governor is not being stoned rather than being celebrated. “Who are the people who came out to celebrate him? Why is he not being stoned with pure water? The masses are the enablers,” she wrote.
Responding, @AdepojuSamuelA said, “They are not as heartless as the people who attended the rally, even though their people are dying.”
Misinformation thrives easily during sad events, and the sensitive comments already trailing this claim prompted DUBAWA to fact-check it.
Verification
We broke the video into keyframes and conducted a reverse image search. This led us to an earlier version, posted on Facebook by Abdullah Yunus on Jan. 24, 2026. Abdullah, who is also a resident of Kaduna, described the footage as showing a crowd welcoming the governor at the commissioning of a “newly constructed asphalt road linking Durum to Kuruntumawa” in the Makarfi local government area.
The governor himself confirmed this event through multiple pictures posted across his social media handles, here and here. DUBAWA observed that his outfit, as shown in the footage and his own social media posts, matches.
“Today marks a significant milestone in our administration’s pursuit of inclusive, equitable, and enduring infrastructure development as we commission the Durum–Kuruntumawa Asphalt Road in Makarfi Local Government Area, alongside the Magajiya–Kasuwan Amaru and Audi–Kako Asphalt Roads in Zaria Local Government Area…” the governor wrote.
We found Punch’s coverage of the event and other videos from the commissioning.
Conclusion
The claim is misleading. While the footage is recent and real, it shows residents of Makarfi Local Government Area welcoming the governor to commission a road project. The video is not of a political rally as claimed.
