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Claim: Amid the ongoing #EndBadGovernance protest in Nigeria, the presidency shared a video of President Bola Tinubu purportedly issuing a passionate plea to Nigerians to embrace peace and “look beyond temporary pains.” The video also appeared on Mr Tinubu’s official X page.
Verdict: Misleading! The video was recycled from a July 2023 broadcast by Mr Tinubu to address the outburst that greeted his administration’s decision to remove fuel subsidies.
Full Text
In recent months, Mr Tinubu’s administration has faced rising criticism over the country’s harsh economic realities. This situation has led several youths to register their grievances in a protest tagged #EndBadGovernace. The protest, scheduled for ten days from August 1, will end on August 10.
The peaceful protest, however, took a dramatic turn in some states across the country, resulting in looting of businesses, destruction of properties, as well as deaths of some protesters. It also gained attention after some protesters were flying Russian flags.
To calm the protesters’ nerves, Mr Tinubu appealed to them in a nationwide broadcast on August 4 to suspend the demonstrations against hunger and hardship.
He called for Nigerians to understand the economic situation in his address and declared he was open to dialogue with the protest organisers.
Mr Tinubu also highlighted his administration’s achievements and outlined some of the next steps.
Despite his address, the protests persisted, with organisers vowing to remain on the streets as criticisms of the president thickened.
Amid the controversy over the protest, the presidency shared a video on August 7 suggesting that Mr Tinubu addressed Nigerians again.
In the video shared via the presidency’s official X page and Mr Tinubu’s personal account, the president was seen pleading with Nigerians to “look beyond temporary pains and aim at the larger picture…”
The presidency did not indicate if the video was recent or old. Checks by DUBAWA showed that many Nigerians believed the video to be recent, with some calling on protesters to stop the demonstrations since the president had already appeared in a broadcast twice in a week. It was reposted here and here.
Further checks by DUBAWA showed that top media outlets like Punch, The Guardian, and Leadership newspapers also believed the video to be recent and reported it, as seen here, here, and here.
Considering that the president just addressed the nation on August 4, DUBAWA was curious to know if the video shared on August 7 was recent and decided to verify it.
Verification
DUBAWA subjected the video to a keyframe analysis on the video verification platform INVID to ascertain the video’s currency.
Results showed the video had been online since July 2023, when Mr Tinubu addressed Nigerians about economic hardship, barely two months into office.
Channels TV reported on the presidential broadcast on July 31, 2023, here. The text of the president’s speech was also reported on the State House website, as seen here.
The president’s broadcast at the time followed outrage at his removal of the fuel subsidy shortly after he assumed office on May 29, 2023.
Critics had described the government’s decision as insensitive, citing the implication of the move on Nigerians.
Conclusion
The video of Mr Tinubu addressing Nigerians, as shared by the presidency and the president’s official page amid the ongoing #EndBadGovernance protests across the country, is old and, therefore, misleading.
