A claim that a protest broke out in Ondo state due to the hardship in Nigeria is circulating on X and YouTube.
The claim, posted by an X user, Nkirukamma (@SabinaNkiru), on January 30, 2024, has since garnered over 500,000 views, more than 1,700 reposts, over 1,800 likes and over 600 comments.
The caption on the video read: “Protest breaks out in Ondo State over hardship. E bin pawa o!!! (pt. 2)”
In the one minute, twenty-second footage, a large banner that had green, white, and blue colours with the inscription ‘Yoruba Nation’ and the Oduduwa symbol could be seen on a pick-up van.
Several people could also be seen in the video demonstrating with some of them wearing a white shirt and cap while waving small flags and banners.
A voice in the video could be heard speaking Yoruba in the noisy background which is translated thus:
You are watching this,… they said they want a Yoruba country! they want their freedom! they don’t want to a part of Nigeria again.
The FactCheckHub has over the year observed that the X user, Nkirukamma (@SabinaNkiru), is fond of posting unverified and misleading claims via her X account, some of which we had debunked earlier here and here.
Another X user @UGOOTWEET also posted the same footage same day and it has gained over 280,000 views.
Arise News, a Nigeria-based Cable TV, also aired the video as recent on the ‘What’s Trending’ segment of its prime TV programme titled: ‘The Morning Show.’
The anchor of the segment, Ojy Okpe, stated that a group of Yoruba Nation activists seeking self-determination for the Yoruba speaking states in Nigeria took to the streets in Ondo State, as they re-echoed calls for secession from Nigeria.
The protesters were armed with placards bearing various inscriptions, as they called for the emancipation of the Yoruba Nation in the wake of the ongoing economic hardship and rising cost of living.
CLAIM
Video shows a protest in Ondo over economic hardship in Nigeria.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is MISLEADING!
A search on Google using the keywords ‘Ondo Protest Hardship’ led us to videos and media reports which dated back to 2021.
A look at some of the videos and news reports displayed on the search results shows that they’ve been online since May 22, 2021, while others were published the following day (May 23, 2021).
It is worthy to note that the BBC News Pidgin did a live coverage of some of the activities that occurred during the protest on May 22, 2021 which was uploaded on its Facebook page.
The BBC News Pidgin reported that the protest was led by the Yoruba Nation agitator, Sunday Adeyemo a.k.a. Sunday Igboho, who called for the secession of the South Western region or the Yoruba speaking states from the rest of Nigeria.
Also, Premium Times reported that the protesters had grounded activities in Akure, the state capital, during the rally while obstructing vehicular movements.
The rally had also taken place in Osogbo (Osun state), Ibadan (Oyo state) and Abeokuta (Ogun state) before it took place in Akure, Ondo state capital.
In conclusion, the video being circulated as a protest over economic hardship is not recent, as it is from a Yoruba Nation rally held in May 2021.
THE VERDICT
The claim that video shows a protest in Ondo over economic hardship in Nigeria is MISLEADING; findings revealed that the video is from a 2021 Yoruba Nation rally that took place in Akure, Ondo state.
Seasoned fact-checker and researcher Fatimah Quadri has written numerous fact-checks, explainers, and media literacy pieces for The FactCheckHub in an effort to combat information disorder. She can be reached at sunmibola_q on X or [email protected].