By Atinuke Seun-Ige
Background
Miss Praise Oluwadamilola Olugola was born on August 22, 2003 to the family of Pastor and Mrs Olugola. A student of Acme Private School, Agbede, Ikorodu, Lagos, Praise was preparing for West Africa Examinations Council (WAEC) exams when she developed an ailment known as sinonasal tumor. Unfortunately, in the family’s move to get funds for medication, 17-year-old Praise became a subject of scam.
Her father, Pastor Olugbenga Daniel Olugola, said the family had spent over five million naira and more still to spend as her left eye has been affected. She can only see with only one eye now.
While Miss Praise was in pain during this ailment, her pastor father was compelled to reach out to the public via social media for help as things got too hard and the family could no longer cope with the financial burden of getting medical treatment for her.
FACT CHECK OF THE WEEK
A Twitter post by World Publicist (@isimaOdeh) claims there is a new virus outbreak in China called the Nipah virus. The Twitter user also claims that the virus has a fatality rate of…
On Wednesday, 3rd February 2021, a short video surfaced online, accompanied by a voice note. The video showed a pandemonium; students running out of their classrooms, jumping from the storey building and fleeing…
One major discourse making headlines In the Nigerian social sphere is the long-standing dispute existing between Fulani Herdsmen and farmers around the country. One headline reads “Ekiti warns herdsmen, farmers against acts inimical to peace,” another one says…
QandA
- Has WHO disqualified Nigeria from receiving COVD-19 Vaccines?
On Twitter, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), a strong opposition party to the ruling party, All Progressives Congress (APC), claims Nigeria has been disqualified by WHO from the list of nations to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. This information is FALSE as the World Health Organization’s communications officer, Kate Ribet, confirmed the information as false. She clarified that “WHO has not disqualified any country in Africa from accessing COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX facility, but rather the organisation is supporting all countries to access vaccines as quickly as possible.”
- Can you register for NIN online?
A certain web-based message claims that the Federal Government has approved Individual NIN registration online to avoid the unnecessary crowd in NIMC centers but when we checked it turned out false. The website sharing this information has been identified to be fraudulent and untrustworthy and is mostly used to boost page views by redirecting users fraudulently. (Continue reading)
Tip Of The Week
- Ask the right question!
FakeNewsAlert
- “We Will Retaliate Attacks on Herdsmen Everywhere” …Miyetti Allah declares – SOURCE: OnlineBlog (Global Excellence Online)
A report by an online news platform, GlobalExcellenceOnline, claims that the national secretary of Miyetti Allah, Kautal Hore, has announced that the group is ready to retaliate the killing of herders in any part of the country. Beware of news of this nature; the report is too delicate and has the potential of inciting fear amongst citizens. Not to mention that the news platform is not credible. Hence, resist the urge to share until proper verification has been done.
Other Fact checks
- What is the correct way to wear a medical mask
- Scammers use ailing teenagers pictures to defraud people diverting needed help from family
- Nipah virus: How true is claim there is a new virus outbreak in chinatown
- Video depicting student running from COVID-19 vaccine old unrelated
- Dated, unrelated pictures used to depict attacks on Fulani herdsmen in Ogun
- Fraudulent website claims NIMC is conducting NIN registration online
- WHO did not disqualify Nigeria from receiving COVID-19 vaccines as claimed by opposition
- Websites promising Who’s 500 Euros 50,000 election committee jobs are fraudulent
- Consuming Ewedu will not cure COVID-19
- Fighting Misinformation on Twitter: Intricacies of Twitter’s/latest pilot feature ‘Birdwatch’
- Six major misinformation subjects Nigerian fact-checkers battled in 2020
- WHO did not approve COVID-19 herbal remedy with black pepper powder ginger juice others as ingredients
- True! Non-respiratory symptoms such as loss of appetite, abdominal pain, confusion, could also be symptoms of VOVID-19
