Please note that the FactCheckHub has not obtained any right from the authors or copyright owners of all third-party contents from embedded links and shall incur no liability in this regard.
Please note that the FactCheckHub has not obtained any right from the authors or copyright owners of all third-party contents from embedded links and shall incur no liability in this regard.
Please note that the FactCheckHub has not obtained any right from the authors or copyright owners of all third-party contents from embedded links and shall incur no liability in this regard.
Please note that the FactCheckHub has not obtained any right from the authors or copyright owners of all third-party contents from embedded links and shall incur no liability in this regard.
A message shared on WhatsApp as seen on Friday, January 15, 2021 says experts have confirmed that consumption of palm oil can help curb the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19).
The claim was attributed to the World Health Organisation (WHO).
It specifically claimed that drinking two spoonful of palm oil every morning would help curb the spread of the virus.
THE CLAIM
WHO says consumption of palm oil can curb the spread of COVID-19.
A screenshot of a claim circulated online that WHO says consumption of palm oil can help stop the spread of coronavirus.
THE FINDINGS
Findings show that the claim is FALSE.
The COVID-19 is a pandemic.
On December 31, 2019, the WHO Country Office in China became aware of the ‘viral pneumonia’ in Wuhan city. The Wuhan Municipal Health Commission issued a media statement on the disease outbreak.
The WHO says it took 98 days for the virus to infect 100, 000 people in Africa and just 18 days thereafter to hit 200, 000 cases.
As of January 15, 2021, 91,816,091 have been infected with 1,986,871 deaths recorded.
On October 22, 2020, the United States Food and Drug Administration announced approval of an antiviral drug Veklury – remdesivir. The drug is the first vaccine for COVID-19 treatment to receive the FDA approval.
By December 31, 2020, the WHO listed Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine as first emergency use for the virus.
“This is a very positive step towards ensuring global access to COVID-19 vaccines. But I want to emphasize the need for an even greater global effort to achieve enough vaccine supply to meet the needs of priority populations everywhere,” Dr. Mariangela Simao, WHO Assistant Director General for Access to Medicines and Health Products stated.
The claim in circulation did not reference any expert or source that can be validated
In addition, the manner at which the message was constructed also defies WHO’s communication pattern.
Charity Warigon, Head of Communication, WHO Nigeria, dismissed the message and distanced the WHO from it.
“This is definitely not a WHO recommendation,” she told The FactCheckHub via a text message.
“In fact, for someone who is coughing, it could be dangerous as they could inhale oil which would be worse off.”
She queried if the claim was ever supported by any data.
“WHO will not make a recommendation without backing it by evidence,” Warigon adds.
She described the post as “another fake news.”
Professor Adebola Olayinka, WHO Infection, Prevention and Control Expert, also shared same position with Warigon.
“No, not true. Another fake news,” she said.
This will not be the first time that a message will be falsely attributed to WHO.
WHO did not send out the message circulating on WhatsApp which recommends that drinking two spoonful of palm oil can curb the spread of COVID-19.
In addition, there is no evidence to back the claim that drinking two spoonful of palm oil can curb the spread of COVID-19; on the contrary, it might aggravate a situation where a person is coughing.
A VIRAL post on Twitter claimed that Anambra State owes a combined debt of over N200 billion.
The claim was made by a Twitter user with the handle @NnamdiChife on January 10, 2021.
The handle currently has over 15,100 followers.
The tweet also stated that the former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, handed over N72 billlion in cash and $150 million in Anambra Generational Fund to his successor, Willie Obiano.
The tweet reads: “I am incredibly heartbroken. Anambra State is owing a combined debt of over N200 billion!!! Peter Obi handed over this state to Obiano with N72 billion in cash and $150M in Anambra Generational Fund. All frittered away, broken infrastructure, debt, and profligacy.”
The tweet, which also appeared on a blog here, has been retweeted more than 1,900 times and liked more than 2,700 times as of 8 p.m. on January 10.
A screenshot of the tweet.
THE CLAIMS
From the tweet, these two claims were established:
Anambra State has a combined debt profile of over N200 billion.
Former Governor Peter Obi handed over N72 billion in cash and $150 million to Governor Willie Obiano.
THE FINDINGS
CLAIM 1: Did Anambra State have a combined debt profile of over N200 billion?
Data shows that this claim is FALSE.
The FactCheckHub checked Nigeria’s Debt Management Office (DMO) website; the government agency in charge of collating the total debts owed by the Federal Government of Nigeria, as well as each state of the Federation.
According to the latest data released by the DMO on 31st of December, 2020 for the domestic debt, Anambra State owed a little over N59 billion (N59,013,845,976.50) as of September 30, 2020.
Screenshot of domestic debt. Source: DMO
Also, according to the latest data released by the DMO on September 9, 2020, for external debt, Anambra State owed $115,886,392.46 as of 30th June 2020.
Screenshot of external debt. Source: DMO
In a bid to quantify in Naira the total external debt owed be Anambra State, the FactCheckHub converted the total external debt owed by the state, which was in Dollars to Naira.
As of June 30, 2020, the official exchange Dollar to Naira rate was N360 to a dollar. $115,886,392.46 multiply by N360 equals to N41,719,101,286.
The FactCheckHub then add the total domestic debt owed together with the total external debt. (N59,013,845,976.50+N41,719,101,286 = N100,732,947,262).
From the findings, the total debt owed by the Anambra State currently stands at N100,732,947,262.
CLAIM 2: Did Peter Obi hand over N72 billion in cash and $150 million in Generational Fund to Willie Obiano?
It would be recalled that Peter Obi handed over the leadership mantle of Anambra State to Willie Obiano on March 17, 2014.
While there is no publicly available data or document that shows that former Anambra State governor, Peter Obi handed over N72 billion in cash and $150 million in Anambra Generational Fund to his successor, there have been several controversies surrounding the actual amount Peter Obi handed over to Willie Obiano.
For instance, in a report published here, Prof Solo Chukwulobelu, the Secretary to the Anambra State Government stated that the rumour that Peter Obi handed over N75 billion to Willie Obiano is far from the truth.
He said “The N75 billion was not there; it was not handed over to anybody. At best, it can be half-truth”.
Chukwulobelu stated that what Obiano’s administration inherited from Obi was N9 billion cash and N26 billion near cash.
In addition, in 2015, Willie Nwokoye, the Principal Secretary to Governor Obiano said the amount in question included quoted stocks, state counterpart fund, long term investments that are non-earning, refund from the federal government for road construction which was still an IOU, among others.
In the article titled: Dissecting The N75 Billion Handover Brouhaha In Anambra where he gave a breakdown of the items in the hand over note, Nwokoye said “The nearest to cash in the foregoing is item 20, which is a USD 155 million investment in Eurobond and other foreign currency-denominated securities made by the previous administration (Peter Obi) at its twilight. In naira terms, this was worth N26.5 billion at handover.”
In response, Valentine Obienyem, the media aide to Peter Obi said that the former governor handed over N75 billion in cash and investment to his successor.
He stated that the breakdown is as follows: N27 billion in local currency investment; N26.5 billion in foreign currency investment and N28.1 billion in certified state/ MDS balances.
Also, the data from Nigeria’s Debt Management Office (DMO) website revealed that as at December 2013, Anambra State under the leadership of Peter Obi owed N3,025,797,046.67 in domestic debt and a total sum of $30,323,574.40 in external debt.
Why it is difficult to ascertain which of the two parties are right, it is easy to conclude that the claim is MOSTLY FALSE, as the amount in contention has always been N75 billion and not N72 billion as stated in the claim.
In addition, from the reactions of the two parties it can be surmised that the amount in question is made up of cash and long term investments, which the Obiano camp said they are mostly non-earning yet.
THE VERDICT
The claim that Anambra State has a combined debt profile of over N200 billion is FALSE.
The claim that Peter Obi handed over N72 billion in cash and $150 million in Generational Fund to Obiano is MOSTLY FALSE.
SOME media platforms on Thursday, January 7, 2021 reported that Atiku Abubakar, a former Vice President of Nigeria is the first Nigerian to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
The reports were published alongside a photo of Atiku getting a shot.
However, there were other platforms that reported the news without suggesting that the prominent politician was the first Nigerian to take the vaccination.
The report that Atiku is the first Nigerian to get the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination generated a lot of discussion online and offline.
THE CLAIM
Atiku Abubakar is the first Nigerian to receive Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
A screenshot of a report claiming Atiku Abubakar is the first Nigeria to get Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by the FactCheckHub show that the claim is MISLEADING.
Atiku Abubakar got a shot of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. Dele Momodu, the publisher of Ovation Magazine confirmed the vaccination. So also is Paul Ibe, Atiku’s media aide.
“The importance of the COVID-19 vaccine in mitigating the effect of coronavirus cannot be overstated, particularly in Africa and Nigeria. On Wednesday, as part of the mass vaccination programme, Atiku Abubakar received the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine,” Ibe stated.
Atiku Abubakar gets vaccinated against COVID-19. PHOTO CREDITS: Dele Momodu.
Following the outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China in 2019, the disease within a short period was designated a pandemic.
Amidst increasing causalities globally and devastating effects on the global economy, the need to find a cure became a matter of urgency.
In February 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) set up a Global Research and Innovation Forum on the virus, with over 300 experts and funders from 48 countries.
It was to ‘identify and fund priority research’ to end the pandemic and prepare for likely future reoccurrence.
In April of the same year, the World Bank joined in the race to strengthen developing country responses to the pandemic.
By November 9, 2020, Pfizer and BioNTech announced a vaccine which was said to be more than 90 per cent effective in preventing the COVID-19 virus.
“This is a very positive step towards ensuring global access to COVID-19 vaccines,” Dr. Mariangela Simao, WHO Assistant Director-General for Access to Medicines and Health, stated in a statement.
This encouraged some countries including the United States to adopt the vaccine, especially for emergency situations.
The European Union (EU), for instance, recently ordered 300 million more vaccines, after its initial 300 million purchase.
The United Arab Emirate (UAE) also adopted Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and Sinopharm for public use.
“Residents in the capital can book for the vaccine now, free of charge,” health service operator told AFP.
It was against this backdrop that Atiku got vaccinated on Wednesday, January 6, 2021 in Dubai.
Prior to that, Dr. Adaora Okoli, a Nigerian had tweeted a picture of herself getting vaccinated. This was on December 16, 2020.
A screenshot of tweets from Dr Adaora Okoli’s Twitter handle @DrAdaora.
She also tweeted another picture of her taking her second dosage on January 6, 2021.
She tweeted with the hashtag #PfizerCovidVaccine: “As I see more COVID-19 patients, I know I am protected and can give my best to them”.
Okoli survived Ebola. She was infected in Lagos while treating one of the first Nigerian cases of the deadly virus. After recovery, she went to the US to study infectious diseases.
Although, the vaccine is not yet in Nigeria, but Nigerians like Okoli in the countries where the vaccines are available are getting vaccinated.
Okoli’s vaccination pre-dates Atiku’s, as such those media reports that claimed Atiku was the first Nigerian to be vaccinated are misleading.
THE VERDICT
The claim by some media platforms that Atiku Abubakar is the first Nigerian to take the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is MISLEADING.
One of the issues that comes up when discussing gender bias in Nigeria both online and offline is that “a woman cannot post bail in Nigeria.”
This statement is used to put forward that a woman cannot stand as surety or provide any security for a defendant or a suspect.
This was further crystalised in a Nigerian web TV series titled: Skinny Girl In Transit (SGIT) by Ndani TV. SGIT is poised as a show that highlights societal issues dealing with themes of domestic violence, adoption, inter-faith and culture relationship, among others.
In the pre-credit opening scene of Season 6 Episode 7 (S6E7), a police officer stated authoritatively that a woman cannot post bail.
As of January 6, 2021, the episode which was posted on March 27, 2020 has garnered over 640,000 views.
A scene from a web tv series – Skinny Girl In Transit – where a policeman stated that a woman cannot post bail in Nigeria.
THE CLAIM
A woman cannot post bail in Nigeria.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by the FactCheckHub show that the claim is false.
‘A woman cannot post bail’ is often listed among the litany of things women cannot do in Nigeria when having gender bias discussion.
The web TV series, SGIT, in a hard to miss position – the first 40 seconds – for S6E7, also reiterated this narrative that a woman cannot post bail in Nigeria.
Here is the dialogue that ensued in the first 40 seconds of the episode.
Woman: I don’t get it. Are you telling me that he is going to sleep here tonight?
Policeman: Madam, I never knew you are such a nice person. But you see, in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (FRN), a woman does not post bail. So, you have to come back with a man tomorrow morning and that is how it is done.
Woman: Really?
Policeman: Yes.
This puts forward that a woman cannot enter any recognisance or stand as surety or provide any security for a defendant because the woman in question attempted to get her son released on bail from detention.
Abimbola Craig who is the lead actress and a producer of SGIT says the show tries to mirror society as well as shed light on societal ills.
Responding to a question around the show opening room for discussion on a lot of societal matters in Nigeria, she said “…Every time we come up with storylines, we try to make sure we come up with stories that are addressing everyone’s life”.
For instance, she pointed out that the show seeks to highlight the ignorance around dating married men. “[What] I really wanted people to take out was the married men situation. It has happened before, it will constantly keep happening. We need to stop being ignorant and letting girls think it’s okay.”
The FactCheckHub reached out to the Managing Partner of Spectrum Legal Services, Saidu Muhammad Lawal, Esq. He noted that the claim is false.
Lawal said “a woman can stand as a surety” in Nigeria.
He however clarified that “’to post bail’ means to pay a sum of money for bail”.
Lawal also stated that a woman can stand as surety for any accused person or defendant standing trial in Nigeria.
He said this is backed by section 42 of the 1999 constitution of the FRN.
Lawal stated that any judge or law that says a woman cannot stand as a surety would be contrary to section 42 of the Nigerian constitution and that law would be void to the extent of its inconsistency with the Constitution.
Another lawyer who is principally into litigation, Barr. John Okebe, concurred with Lawal adding that the practice of not allowing women to stand as surety does exist.
Okebe told the FactCheckHub that “It is not the law that says a woman cannot post bail in Nigeria. I must however admit that it is a fact in some parts of Nigeria that women are disallowed from guaranteeing bail.”
Okebe said culture and the stereotype that women are incapable of owning personal properties which is often a condition for guaranteeing bail are likely reasons why this might happen.
He, however, maintained that “The law itself, in this instance, the Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex as such wherever and whenever a woman is not allowed, such a woman can maintain action in fundamental rights from discrimination on the basis of sex.”
Nnenna Joy Eze, a partner at Ijenna LP, noted that the constitution is silent on who is eligible to post bail; as such the claim is false.
She said, “from the combined reading of Section 35(4) and Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution of the FRN as well as Section 30 of Administration of the Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), nothing stops a woman from posting bail.”
The sections reads:
“Section 35 (4) Any person who is arrested or detained in accordance with subsection (1) (c) of this section shall be brought before a court of law within a reasonable time, and if he is not tried within a period of –
(a) two months from the date of his arrest or detention in the case of a person who is in custody or is not entitled to bail; or
(b) three months from the date of his arrest or detention in the case of a person who has been released on bail, he shall (without prejudice to any further proceedings that may be brought against him) be released either unconditionally or upon such conditions as are reasonably necessary to ensure that he appears for trial at a later date.
Section 30 ACJA reads; 1) Where a suspect has been taken into police custody without a warrant for an offence other than an offence punishable with death, an officer in charge of a police station shall inquire into the case and release the suspect arrested on bail subject to subsection (2) of this section, and where it will not be practicable to bring the suspect before a court having jurisdiction with respect to the offence alleged, within 24 hours after the arrest.
(2) The officer in charge of a police station shall release the suspect on bail on his entering into a recognisance with or without sureties for a reasonable amount of money to appear before the court or at the police station at the time and place named in the recognisance.
(3) Where a suspect is taken into custody and it appears to the police officer in charge of the station that the offence is of a capital nature, the arrested suspect shall be detained in custody, and the police officer may refer the matter to the Attorney- General of the Federation for legal advice and cause the suspect to be taken before a court having jurisdiction with respect to the offence within a reasonable time.
Now these two sections provide for bail and as you can see, nothing here suggests such, she noted.
Eze told the FactCheckHub that some argue that Section 122 of the Criminal Procedure Act creates such a provision:
“An accused admitted to bail may be required to produce such surety or sureties as, in the opinion of the court admitting him to bail, will be sufficient to ensure his appearance as and when required and shall with him or them enter into a recognisance accordingly.”
However, this, Eze stated, is struck off by Section 14 of the Interpretation Act which clearly states that “words importing the masculine gender include females.”
Furthermore, Eze stated that section 42 of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution precludes any law in force in Nigeria from subjecting anyone to any form of disability or restriction on grounds, inter alia, of sex.
Eze also noted that the Administration of Criminal Justice (Repeal and Re-enactment) Law of Lagos State, 2011, which is the criminal procedural law in place within Lagos, has dispelled every doubt as to the eligibility of a woman to post bail by its provision in section 118 (3) of the law which states that “No person shall be denied or prevented or restricted from entering into any recognisance or standing as surety or providing any security on the ground that the person is a woman”.
She added that Section 167 (3) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 that regulates criminal procedure in the FCT has a similar provision.
Furthermore, all states that have domesticated this law equally have similar provisions too, she explained.
THE VERDICT
The claim that a woman cannot post bail in Nigeria is FALSE.
This is because the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is silent on the gender of eligibility and it also does not allow for discrimination on the basis of sex.
A VIRAL post on Facebook claims that Canada is giving 10 years e-Visa to Nigerian professionals.
The claim, which was posted on a newly created Facebook page parading itself as that of the Nigerian High Commission in Ottawa, Canada listed the category of professionals the visa will cover.
The claim also stated that only 6,000 Nigerians will benefit from the e-Visa.
The page, which currently has 1,338 followers, posted the claim on December 7, attributing it to Adeyinka Asekun, the current Nigerian High Commissioner to Canada.
THE CLAIM:
That Canada is giving 10 years e-Visa to Nigerian professionals.
THE FINDINGS:
Checks show that the claim is FALSE.
Findings by the FactCheckHub revealed that the Facebook page that posted the claim was created precisely on December 5, 2020 – few days before the post was made.
The page has already gotten more than a thousand followers in less than 10 days.
The FactCheckHub also reached out to Adeyinka Asekun, the Nigerian High Commissioner to Canada to confirm the authenticity of the page.
Azu Mozia, the Minister; Political & Consular Affair, who responded on behalf of the High Commissioner stated that the claim is false in its entirety.
Mozia, in an email to the FactCheckHub, stated that claim is not only bogus but the page is also fake.
“Please be informed that this faceless group of criminals has been circulating false information about an e-Visa agreement between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and President Muhamadu Buhari, which allegedly took place during their meeting in February 2020 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
“Yes, they indeed met but on the then issue of Canada’s candidature of the UN Security Council,” the email read in part.
Mozia also stated that the general public should disregard the claim in its entirety.
He added that “The High Commission is currently seized with efforts to reduce the rate of official refusal of Study Permits to potential Nigerian students by the Canadian government and to stop planned mass deportation of Nigerian asylum seekers.”
THE VERDICT
The claim that Canada is giving 10 years e-Visa to Nigerian professionals is FALSE
A post made by a social media influencer, Reno Omokri, and shared over 4,000 times on Twitter claims that Nigeria’s foreign debt has risen to $34 billion under President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.
Omokri, who was an aide to former Nigerian president, Goodluck Jonathan, on November 16, 2020, said the foreign debts rose from $11 billion in 2015 to $34 billion in 2020.
He also added that President Buhari has increased the price of fuel three times in 2020.
He wrote “General Muhammadu Buhari has increased fuel price for the 3rd time this year. No other government before him ever did this. Yet, he has increased our foreign debt from $11 billion in 2015 to $34 billion today.”
The claims as posted on Twitter.
THE CLAIMS
Claim 1: Foreign debt rose from $11 billion in 2015 to $34 billion in 2020.
Claim 2: President Buhari has increased fuel price for the third time in 2020.
THE FINDINGS
The claim that foreign debt rose from $11 billion in 2015 to $34 billion in 2020 is MOSTLY FALSE because the 2015 figure is accurate while that of 2020 is not.
What is Nigeria’s current debt?
The Debt Management Office (DMO) is responsible for collating and coordinating debts sought by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
This figure is less than the figure ($34 billion) put forward in the claim.
The debt was categorised into two groups – multilateral and bilateral.
The DMO data which is updated quarterly shows the debt as of June 30, 2020 and it was uploaded on September 9, 2020.
The World Bank also has the same figure as the DMO.
Details of foreign loans secured by the Nigerian Government as at June 2020. This is the most recent as at press time. Photo Credit: DMO
What was Nigeria’s foreign debt in 2015?
The FactCheckHub verification shows that as of December 2015, Nigeria’s foreign debt was $10,718,430,000 ($10.72 billion) which when rounded up is $11 billion as stated in the claim.
Nigeria’s Foreign Debt as of 31st December 2015. Photo Credit: DMO
Therefore, based on the above data, the claim is Mostly False.
CLAIM 2
In recent months within 2020, the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol has fluctuated based on changes in international crude oil prices
In Nigeria, the international crude oil price is used as a benchmark for the country’s annual budget.
While the PPPRA regulates the fuel price, the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC) is the marketer.
The PPMC is also responsible for the supply of petroleum products to domestic markets. It has depots scattered across the country from where PMS is supplied to petrol stations.
On March 20, 2020, the PPPRA commenced the market-based pricing regime for the PMS due to the deregulation of Nigeria’s downstream sector.
This implies that the agency would only monitor market trends and advise the NNPC and the oil marketing company on the market-based prices.
As such, the PPMC as of date is solely responsible for importing refined petroleum products for further distribution across the country. This is largely attributed to non-availability of forex to private oil marketers.
However, unlike the subsidy era where the government subsidizes fuel prices and PPPRA determines fuel cost, normal market forces currently determine petrol prices as purchased by the PPMC or private fuel marketers.
But, did Buhari increase fuel price for the third time in 2020?
Findings show that fuel, which connotes PMS in Nigeria, was increased more than three times in 2020.
In January and February 2020, Abdulkadir Saidu, PPPRA Executive Secretary pegged the open market price for petrol at N175.52 per litre and N156.02 per litre respectively.
This price was reduced to N125 in March, and it was further reduced to N121.50 – N123.50 per litre in May of same year. However, this new ex-depot price was to take effect in June 2020.
The Ex-depot price is the price at which depot owners sell the commodity to retail outlets.
In recent times, the ex-depot price per litre of petrol is normally around N15 lower than the pump price, as the marketers would add cost of transporting the commodity from the depots to their retail outlets, in addition to other costs, such as marketers’ margin, among others.
In July 2020, the ex-depot price was increased to a range between N140.80 and N143.80.
The following month of August, it was still increased to a range between N145.86 and N148.86.
As of December 2020, Timipre Sylva, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources announced that the government would no longer fix the fuel prices.
Earlier in October, President Buhari, who is also the Minister of Petroleum Resources, during his speech to commemorate the country’s 60th independence anniversary, argued that the fuel price is low in comparison to other countries, adding that as such, it is unsustainable.
“Fuel prices in Nigeria are to be adjusted. We sell now at N161 per litre,” Buhari stated.
By November, the ex-depot price was increased once again to N155.17.
About a month after the claim by Reno, in December, the government promised a N5 price reduction.
THE VERDICT
The claim that foreign debt rose from $11 billion in 2015 to $34 billion in 2020 is MOSTLY FALSE. The 2015 figure is accurate while that of 2020 is not.
Also, the claim that President Buhari has increased fuel price for the third time in 2020 is MOSTLY TRUE, because it was increased more than three times.
A VIRAL post on Twitter claimed that Oyo State Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) has increased by over 26 per cent.
The post added that Kaduna State is planning to tax everyone above 18 years in the state.
The claims were made by a Twitter influencer, #OurFavOnlineDoc with the handle @DrOlufunmilayo on November 16.
Dr Olufunmilayo is currently having over 301,600 followers on her Twitter account where these claims were made.
“Seyi Makinde promised his govt will never increase tax on any Oyo citizen. NBS report showed Oyo State IGR increased 26.4% DESPITE no extra taxes.
But El-Rufai plans to tax everyone >18 in his state- though he has not given everyone jobs,” the tweet read in part.
THE CLAIMS:
From the tweet, these two claims were established:
Oyo State IGR increased by 26.4 per cent.
Kaduna State Government is planning to tax everyone above 18 years in the state.
THE FINDINGS:
CLAIM 1 : Did Oyo State IGR increase by 26.4% ?
Data show that the claim is TRUE.
The IGR – Internally Generated Revenues – are revenues generated by States within the Nigerian federation.
It is independent of their share of revenue from the federation account. States generate their IGR through fines, taxes, sales, rents, interest and other avenues.
Although the author of this claim did not specify the particular quarter of the year or period he was talking about but the FactCheckHub findings show that the Oyo State IGR has increased to 26.4% in the latest data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
According to the data for Internally Generated Revenue at State Level for the 2020 half-year (H1) released by the NBS, Oyo State IGR had a 26.4% increase when compared to the same period of the previous year.
The total revenue for the half-year 2020 stands at N17,773,591,538.99 against the N14,060,685,978.15 that it was in the 2019 half-year.
CLAIM 2: Is Kaduna State Government planning to tax everyone above 18 years?
Checks show that the claim is TRUE.
Findings by the FactCheckHub shows that the Kaduna State Government is planning to tax every citizen of the state that is above 18 years of age.
The Kaduna State Internal Revenue Service (KSIRS) had on November 10 announced via its Twitter page that the state will begin to charge every citizen of the state that is above 18 years a compulsory N1,000 as Development Levy.
“Payment of Development Levy is compulsory, citizens of Kaduna State from 18 years and above are entitled to pay their development Levy into Kaduna State Revenue Accounts, it’s your civic responsibility to pay your N1,000 as Development Levy. #TAX4SERVICE,” the tweet read.
Similarly, Dr Zaid Abubakar, The Executive Chairman of the Kaduna State Internal Revenue Service (KADIRS) has said at a news conference in Kaduna, that as from 2021, every adult residing in the state would be made to pay the N1,000 levy.
THE VERDICT:
The claim that Oyo State IGR has increased by 26.4% is TRUE.
The claim that Kaduna State Government is planning to tax everyone above 18 years in the state is TRUE.
WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging platforms, with over 2 billion monthly active users.
Although, WhatsApp is helpful in staying connected with friends and family, but it is also being used to spread fake news and rumors.
The uniqueness of the encrypted messaging platform and groups, which are limited to 256 people really make it difficult for content to fly easily without knowing its source.
However, apart from being skeptical with anything you come across on the platform, there is need to also apply the following tactics in checking the veracity of any post you come across on WhatsApp:
Look for the ‘Forwarded’ tag
Oftentimes, fake news is always being shared as a forwarded post on WhatsApp.
Although, you cannot see the number of times a message has been forwarded, you can, however, see an arrow icon above the message together with the caption “Forwarded”.
Above is an example of a forwarded post we saw on WhatsApp that eventually turned out to be false after conducting our fact-check.
Although the ‘Forwarded’ tag does not necessarily mean that the message is false because the tag is added to all messages that are shared multiple times, but a message with the tag should raise red flags.
The following ways might help you determine the veracity of such message.
Check Websites
Whenever you come across any viral post on WhatsApp, there is need to check the social media accounts or website of the institutions and companies referenced in the forwarded message.
Several organisations often share information about their events and activities on their social media handles. In the same vein, they also debunk information that have been falsely attributed to them via same channels too.
For instance, when the above news of N-Power was in circulation, apart from the fact that we found out that the website attached to the news was entirely different from the one designed for the programme, we also realized that the information wasn’t shared on the website of the institution in charge of N-Power.
The official N-Power website is https://npower.fmhds.gov.ng, whereas the website in the viral post was “n-power-list.bid”.
Check Social Media
Furthermore, the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development (FMHDSD) debunked the fake news on their official verified Twitter account.
The N-Power programme is under this ministry.
Search for keywords in a post
Whenever you see any suspicious WhatsApp message, there is also need for you to Google search the keywords in it.
If such a post was attributed to a government organisation or large companies, the event therein could have been subject of a news story.
Organisations often update their activities to the Press.
For instance, if the Nigerian Government wants to employ 50,000 workers as seen in a viral post, the agency involved would have informed the press about such development.
In addition, if such claim has been a subject of a fact-check, you can come across such article through the Google search.
For instance, when you come across the above news that N-Power has shortlisted applicants for its programme, you can surf Google by simply typing: “N-power 2020 list”
From the screenshot, you can see that the first three feeds are from blogs that have nothing to do with the N-Power list. When you click each of the blogs, you will eventually realize that the list is not there and they only publish the news to gain traffic.
Reach out to fact-checking and major media organisations
You can also get in touch with fact-checking organisations like us, The FactCheckHub.
Send any suspicious messages, memes, photos, videos or voice notes you receive to a fact-checking organisation in your country.
Once they publish a fact-check. You should endeavour to share the article in the original group where the content appeared to enable those who were exposed to the information know whether it is true or false.
In the past, we have received several news content (or information) from our audience who need clarifications. You can as well send us that viral WhatsApp post that is unclear to you to us via this link.
Use mobile tools for Images
In a bid to verify any WhatsApp message you come across, especially if it is a picture or video, there is need for you to adopt the usage of mobile tools to aid the verification. You can use mobile tools like Google reverse image search,TinEye or Yandex to verify images, while you use InVid to verify video content you come across on WhatsApp.
Multiple posts on social media platforms claim that Nigerians will pay fifteen thousand Dollars- bond to the U.S. government as a “new rule” to get a visa.
The claim, as seen on a Facebook post published on November 24, 2020, reads: “Are you a Nigerian trying to visit the U.S. soon, Before you go apply for your visiting visa; be ready to pay a $15, 000 bond to the US government.”
It says the new ‘temporary final rule’ from US State Department takes effect from December 24 through June 24, 2021.
While adding that, it is targeted at countries whose citizens have higher statistics of over staying beyond the approved visitors (B2) and business travellers (B1) visas.
THE CLAIM
Nigerians will now pay a $15,000 bond for U.S. visa.
Nigeria is not part of the US visa bond programme as falsely stated in this post.
THE FINDINGS
Checks by the FactCheckHub reveal that the claim is FALSE.
The US Embassy in Nigeria has debunked the claim.
In a tweet, the embassy stated that “The United States Mission in Nigeria can confirm that Nigeria is not currently part of the pilot visa bond programme”.
What is the visa bond programme?
The visa bond requirement is as a result of a new rule by the outgoing President Donald Trump’s administration whereby applicants from selected countries are required to pay a bond of up to $15,000 in addition to visa fees.
The visa bond will affect countries whose nationals had an overstay rate of 10 per cent or more in 2019.
This new policy will be implemented on a temporary basis for six months – December to June – as a pilot scheme to test run it, the US Embassy in Nigeria stated.
Screenshot of reaction of the US Embassy in Nigeria on its official blog.
A statement, it issued, says it is in response to the April 2019 Presidential Memorandum on Combating High Non-Immigrant Overstay Rates.
It added that “Among other efforts to address this challenge, the State Department is considering additional steps to address overstays, including piloting a limited visa bonds program to test, in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the operational feasibility of posting, processing, and discharging visa bonds as means to ensure the timely departure from the United States of certain travelers.
“Accordingly, the State Department will begin a limited six-month visa bond pilot program beginning on December 24, 2020. We are committed to combating visa overstays and making sure travellers to the United States respect our laws”.
It noted that “Nigeria is not included in this six months pilot program.”
Findings show that the visa bond rule will permit the U.S. Consular officers to request tourist and business travellers from nations whose nationals had an overstay rate of 10 per cent and above in 2019 to pay a refundable bond of $5,000, $10,000 or $15,0000.
The affected 24 countries are: Laos, Yemen, Libya, Syria, Sudan, Sao Tome and Principe, Papua New Guinea, Mauritania, Liberia, Iran, Guinea-Bissau, Gambia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Congo, Chad, Cape Verde, Burundi, Burma, Burkina Faso, Bhutan, Angola and Afghanistan.
Although, the Trump’s administration had issued a number of immigration restrictions to Nigeria in the last two years, reports show that statistics of Nigerians travelling to the US has reduced.
THE VERDICT
The claim that Nigerians will now pay a $15,000 bond for U.S. visa is FALSE. Nigeria is not part of the U.S. visa bond programme.
A photo shared thousands of times on Twitter and in multiple WhatsApp groups, claiming to be an attempt to launch a rocket in Nigeria is misleading.
“Made in US” and “Made in Nigeria” says a November 14, 2020 tweet that shared the photo in comparison with another photo showing a US Falcon 9 rocket hoisted into vertical launch position.
The tweet has been liked more than 5800 times and retweeted more than 1400 times.
The same user also shared the photo edited to add the caption “150 billion naira was the budget for the successful launching of Nigeria rocket at the Centre for Space Transport and Propulsion…”
Similarly, the photo was shared in a WhatsApp group, this time around in comparison with another rocket in a vertical position. The rocket is branded with the Ethiopian flag. The accompanying caption reads “Nigerian space rocket vs Ethiopian space ?. May God not shame us o…”
This photo has led to several conversation with a number of such conversations tilting towards Nigeria not being at par with other countries despite huge investment made in the sector.
A misleading comparison.
THE CLAIM:
The photo shows a rocket ready for launch into space in Nigeria.
THE FINDINGS:
Checks by The FactCheckHub shows that the claim is misleading.
NASRDA confirms photograph
The spokesman for the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA) in Nigeria, Dr. Felix Ale, confirmed the picture to The FactCheckHub.
The NASRDA is the Federal Government agency responsible for developing, designing and building right hardware and software in space technology.
He explained that the activity being carried out was to test their capacities ahead of when the country will launch its satellite.
He described the picture as a ‘classified photograph’ that should not be in the public domain.
“It is part of our roadmap to have our launch site where we can launch our satellites in Nigeria. As a result of that, we have CSTP (Centre for Space Transport and Propulsion) located at EPE. It is in preparation for our programme until when we have the capacity,” Ale told this reporter.
“That is the centre we will use the moment we are ready to launch our satellite,” Ale added referring to CSTP.
The image uploaded on CSTP website with date showing February 2020.
It however, provided no detail aside from ““Rocket Launch.”’ and “Contents coming soon.”
The CSTP was established in 2003 as one of the ‘six activity centres’ of NASRDA.
The photo shows several individuals some of whom wore safety kits with CSTP inscription.
The photograph was uploaded on February 1, 2020, with an original dimension of 1700 by 2560 and 96 dpi (Dots Per Inch) before it was altered and shared on social media.
The website link also serves as a subdomain of the NASRDA.
The image on the right has been manipulated to include the Ethiopian flag.
Is this an Ethiopian rocket?
This photo which was shared in a WhatsApp group with the caption “Nigerian space rocket vs Ethiopian space ?. May God not shame us o…” has been manipulated to add the Ethiopian flag.
The photo is of Long March 5 being transported to a launch site. It was photographed by 篁竹水声 (Huáng zhú shuǐ shēng – google transcription) in 2017.
Long March 5 is a Chinese heavy-lift launch vehicle developed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT).
It belongs to the Long March rockets family operated by the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
Long March 5 Y2 transporting to launch site.
THE VERDICT:
Based on the above findings, the viral picture was shot in Nigeria but the context in which it was shared is MISLEADING.
The government officials were not launching a rocket into the space but were conducting a mock launch test.
From the tweet, these two claims were established:
