CLAIM: Viral media post claims that the federal government is deliberating on the decision to ban Instagram use in Nigeria.
FALSE: Neither this news nor the screenshot below could be found on the Channels TV website. There was also no evidence of this on their Youtube channel or on their Twitter timeline. Additionally, Tolu Ogunlesi, Special Assistant to the President on Digital/ New Media tagged the claim as false.
Full Text:
A viral picture showing the Channels TV insignia and Broadcast News card claimed:
Verification:
Firstly, a reverse image search was conducted. However, no viable results were provided.
The picture started circulating on social media on the 2nd of October at about 11 am, but it curiously carries a timestamp showing that it was captured at 16:15. However, on the 2nd of October, Buhari departed Nigeria to South Africa after the Federal Executive Council meeting.
A part of the text in the picture reads “ … today during his meeting with the ministerial council at Abuja,” which is strange because the concerned meeting is called the Federal Executive Council Meeting, not the ‘Ministerial Council.’
Moreover, the news reports from the meeting failed to announce this social media ban or even allude to it.
Additionally, a thorough run-through ChannelsTV social media platforms showed no evidence of this report being published on the website. Channel’s Twitter timeline, YouTube channel and ChannelsTV website did not have any information on this particular report. The Presidency’s communication channel also did not publish anything of the sort.
Calls and messages sent to Femi Adesina, Senior Special Adviser to the President on Media for verification were not acknowledged. However, Tolu Ogunlesi (Special Assistant to the President on Digital Media) announced via his Twitter account that it is fake news and also pointed out the error of the use of the phrase ‘ministerial council.’
“Anyways, this is Fake News. You can tell where it came from by watching the people sharing it most enthusiastically on social media. No such meeting or ‘deliberation’ happened. There is no such thing as “Ministerial Council”, too. It’s called Fed Exec Council (FEC).”
Femi Adesina
Conclusion
It is safe to conclude that this particular claim is false as it is neither on the ChannelsTv website, its YouTube channel or its Twitter timeline. Also, Tolu Ogunlesi, Special Assistant to the President on New Media, tagged the claim as fake news.
