The upcoming 2023 general elections have increased the rate of information disorder in Nigeria. Politicians and even citizens (with or without a motive) continue to put out information related to politics, especially on social media.
Below is a pick of ten politics-related claims DUBAWA fact-checked in 2022.
In an interview with Daily Trust, the All Progressive Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, claimed that Lagos State is the largest economy in Africa. Although Nigeria has the largest economy in Africa, no statistics point to Lagos as the largest economy in Africa. Read here.
In a statement on social media, a claim that the Nigerian government has increased fuel prices to reduce traffic and accidents was attached to Lai Mohammed, Nigeria’s minister of information. We found this false as there was no evidence that this came from the minister. Read here.
Earlier in the year, a claim in a WhatsApp message stated that the President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, said he would not embark on foreign medical trips. But findings revealed this claim to be false as Mr Buhari never said he would not embark on foreign medical journeys. Read here.
Recently, a clip made the rounds on social media, particularly on the WhatsApp messaging app, claiming that the former president of the United States, Donald Trump, has released names of corrupt Nigerian politicians. Conversely, DUBAWA found this false as no evidence supports the assertion. Read here.
In a viral video, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, was described as the owner of a skyscraper in the United Arab Emirates. However, our findings revealed this to be false. Read here.
In a viral Facebook post, popular American TV Host Steve Harvey was claimed to have travelled to Nigeria to support Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party. But our findings revealed this as false. Read here.
A chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Joe Igbokwe, shared the screenshot supposed to have been tweeted by Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The tweet quoted Atiku saying he gifted $10 million to Bishop David Oyedepo after the cleric prayed for him. Conversely, our fact-check linked this tweet to a parody account that has been suspended since 2019. Read here.
In July, social media was awash with a man’s photo in Biafran apparel and standing on Nigeria’s flag with a claim that he was the son of Peter Obi, a frontline presidential candidate in Nigeria. Contrarily, our fact-check revealed that the picture is unrelated to Mr Obi’s son and is, therefore, false. Read here.
In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, President Muhammadu Buhari said that 38.7 million, representing 35 per cent of total eligible Nigerians targeted for COVID-19 vaccination, have been fully vaccinated against the virus. However, data from the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) proved this false. Read here.
In a video caption, a Nigerian newspaper subtly displayed Reno Omokri, Special Assistant to former President Goodluck Jonathan and also a staunch supporter of Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), as joining the supporters of Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in London. Meanwhile, we found this to have been used in a misleading context. Read here.
