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Claim: An X user has alleged that the Gambia’s National Water and Electricity Company (NAWEC) limited supply to residents in the first week of May 2024 to “impress” visitors attending the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in the country.
Verdict: This is false. DUBAWA’s checks have revealed that NAWEC did not make the claim attributed to the company. Rather, a parody account on X (formerly Twitter) put out the message. The water company has, however, advised Gambians to disregard any message shared by the parody account.
Full Text
The Gambia hosted the 15th Islamic Summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) from May 4 to 5, 2018.
In the lead-up to the programme, The National Water and Electricity Company (NAWEC) released a statement on May 3, 2023, assuring delegates of the OIC member states of their commitment and readiness to “provide excellent services to guests throughout their stay.”
In the statement, NAWEC said:
“In preparation for this significant occasion, we have dedicated ourselves to ensuring that every facet of your visit is both comfortable and seamless. From the crystal-clear waters that grace our taps to the reliable electricity that illuminates our streets, NAWEC stands as a beacon of infrastructural prowess.”
The statement came days after citizens in many parts of the country experienced acute water shortages and problems with electricity.
Some Gambians took to social media to express their displeasure with the NAWEC’s statement regarding the limited water and electricity supply.
An X user, Muhammed Ceesay wrote:
“NAWECC, for the past weeks [those of] us at Sinchu Alagie [had] access to water around 3 am to 5 am only. Electricity is now a jumping light during these heat waves. As a responsible utility supply your focus should be on both the visitors and the citizens. You cannot make us suffer like this.”
Another X user, Cherno O. Bah said:
“And congratulations for putting us in the dark. We’ve also seen your incompetence, and you deserve to be commended for that Bravo.”
Riding on the back of the challenge faced by Gambians, a parody NAWEC account on X said water and electricity supply to the citizens was limited because of the need to “impress” visitors attending the Islamic summit.
A screenshot of the post by the parody account
“We are not firing anyone…if we don’t impress delegates what do you expect us to do?” the parody X account retorted.
DUBAWA decided to investigate the claim because of the interest it has generated on social media in the West African country.
Verification
In investigating the claim, DUBAWA first found a disclaimer from NAWEC dissociating the institution from the content of the statement purported to have been issued by them.
Reacting to the message shared by what appears to be a parody account on X, NAWEC cautioned Gambians to desist from engaging with the “imposter account” that is “falsely purporting affiliation with NAWEC.”
“We wish to bring to your attention that the account “@Uncle_Babou” is NOT associated with NAWEC,” the water company said in a statement released on May 5, 2024.
A screenshot of the press release issued by NAWEC in response to the parody account
Also, data available on X showed that the parody account had been deleted after several reports were filed against the managers.
DUBAWA later conducted a Google keyword search to find out if any reputable media organisation in Gambia had published news reports about the purported NAWEC claim.
There is also no evidence anywhere to suggest that NAWEC said it limited water and electricity supply to Gambians because it wanted to “impress” the visitors who participated in the Islamic summit in the first week of May 2024.
However, NAWEC had announced an impending load-shedding due to the OIC summit.
“In response to the ongoing Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit and the increased demand for electricity in the summit area and surrounding hotels, NAWEC (National Water and Electricity Company) regrets to inform you that load-shedding measures are being implemented,” NAWEC said in a statement shared on its Facebook with an attached load-shedding timetable.
Conclusion
DUBAWA’s findings showed that the statement that claimed NAWEC limited water and electricity supply to Gambians to “impress” the delegates from member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation is not true. NAWEC issued no such statement.
The researcher produced this fact-check per the DUBAWA 2024 Kwame Karikari Fellowship, in partnership with PTV GAMBIA, to facilitate the spirit of “truth” in journalism and enhance media literacy.
