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.
SEVERAL Nigerian blogs on Sunday, November 15, 2020 reported that an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) was shot dead on Friday in Benin, the Edo State capital.
The Nation newspaper also published the news before removing it.
The news blogs claimed that the ACP was shot during a gunfire exchange with cult members who were involved in a supremacy battle.
The blogs further added that the ACP eventually died on Saturday at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital.
“Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP, name withheld), who was shot on Friday in Benin, the Edo State capital, during the exchange of gunfire with cult members engaged in supremacy battle, died on Saturday at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital,” says the 24 reports
THE CLAIM:
Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) was shot dead in Edo State.
A screenshot of the report on a blog.
THE FINDINGS:
The FactCheckHub put a call through to Chidi Nwabuzor, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of Edo State who stated that the news making round that the ACP was shot dead is false.
Nwabuzor said the ACP was attacked and injured alongside two other policemen.
He explained that the are in stable condition and receiving treatment at the hospital.
“The news making round that an ACP was killed during a cult clash is false.
“Although the ACP sustained injury on his arm and hips, but he is in a stable condition receiving treatment together with two other policemen that were shot,” Nwabuzor explained.
Similarly, Jack Obinyan, the senior special adviser to the Edo State Governor on New Media has also debunked the claim.
Obinyan in a tweet said, “Assistant Commissioner of @PoliceN in Edo is alive and recovering. Please discard news of his demise.”
THE VERDICT:
The claim is FALSE. The Assistant Commissioner of Police even though he was injured is not dead as reported.
A VIRAL post on social media claimed that the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development (FMHDS) in Nigeria has shortlisted candidates for its 2020 N-Power programme.
The post which was repeatedly shared in several WhatsApp groups, directed people to follow a particular link to check their names.
“Check your name on the N-POWER Shortlisted names. Documentation will commence immediately”, the post retrieved from a WhatsApp group read.
Similarly, financialwatchngr, voiceofnigeria.org.ng, unn-edu.nfo and some other blogs had posted some click bait articles to claim people have been shortlisted for the N-power programme, but the content of the reports are not shortlist as stated in the headlines.
THE CLAIM
N-power has shortlisted names for its 2020 programme and that people can check via a particular link.
THE FINDINGS
Checks shows that the claim is false.
The N-Power is a scheme set up by the President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria, It is meant to address the issues of youth unemployment and social development.
It was created as a component of the National Social Investment Programme.
In a bid to verify the claim, the FactCheckHub observed that the website in the post is different from the website created for the programme by the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development (FMHDS).
The official N-Power website is https://npower.fmhds.gov.ng .
The website in the claim “n-power-list.bid” seeks to gain traffic by prompting people to share.
For instance, the first page of the website asked people to click a link to check their name, while the following page asked for their mobile number. After which it directs people to another page asking them to share the post in 12 WhatsApp groups before having access to process the documentation.
The third page of the fake website asking people to share the link in 12 whatsApp groups before proceeding.
The FactCheckHub also reached out to the FMHDS to confirm if a shortlist for the N-Power programme is out as claimed.
Halima Oyelade, a special assistant on media to the FMHDS minister noted that the claim in circulation is false and that the ministry is yet to shortlist people for the N-power programme.
”This is not true,” she replied The FactCheckHub‘s enquiry via a text message.
The ministry also made a tweet debunking the claim labelling it as fake news.
— Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs (@fmha_pa) November 13, 2020
In addition, the FactCheckHub had earlier fact-checked and debunked a similar claim.
Such kind of claims masquerading as what they are not usually target topics and areas that a lot of people are interested in, like relief fund, recruitment and in this case youth unemployment which affects a lot of people either directly or indirectly.
The objective is often geared towards driving traffic to a website – as it often asks for a link to be shared a certain number of times. It could also be a survey website getting people to fill out questionnaires under false pretense. Sometimes such websites are set up to obtain people’s information for nefarious purposes.
One way to avoid falling victims to such is to try and verify the information by going to the government, institution, agency or company social media handle. A number of such institutions that attract public interest are verified on social media. Such social media handle usually have the website included in the bio.
In this case the N-Power twitter account is not verified , so you might be faced with several accounts passing itself as the real account. The FMHDS account is verified, this is the ministry overseeing the N-Power programme. You can check it timeline and see if it is retweeting content from any of the N-Power accounts. That way you can know which of the account is authentic.
In addition, since you have a verified FMHDS twitter handle you can go through the bio to go to the website and and look for the N-power programme – It is the parent body, it should have information about N-Power.
And in this case it does. Clicking on the N-power programme listed on the ministry’s website provides a link via which you can go to the authentic N-power website.
You can now compare this website with the one in the broadcast message if they are the same or not.
Another way is to google search the information using key words, government, agencies or ministries would often release a press statement about different steps or milestones of their programmes as such it is most likely going to be in the news.
Google searching can also let you know if a claim has been a subject of a fact-check.
THE VERDICT
Based on the checks above the claim that N-power has shortlisted names for its 2020 programme is FALSE.
A video which has been shared multiple times online claims that drinking hot water six times daily can help cure Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).
The narration in the one minute thirty-one seconds video states that, drinking hot water and tea can cure COVID-19, because steamy water makes the COVID-19 virus die slowly.
“Do you know how they controlled the virus? It was in this manner. The Chinese drink hot water six times a day. They also drink hot milk and tea four times daily. That’s not all, they inhale the steam as many times a day as possible,” the video claims.
“When you do this for four days, the COVID-19 within you slowly dies off and you are cured on the fifth day.”
It attributed the measure as the solution adopted by the Chinese people and was largely responsible as to how the Chinese government was able to control the virus.
THE CLAIM
That drinking of hot water six times daily, drinking of tea four times daily and inhaling steam can cure COVID-19.
A scene from the viral video claiming drinking tea can cure COVID-19.
THE FINIDNGS
The claim is found to be false as the World Health Organisation (WHO), the body managing global health responses is yet to announce a cure for the disease.
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is defined as an ailment caused by a new strain of coronavirus known as the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-Cov-2). The WHO described infectious disease as a respiratory pathogen.
It was first reported to WHO on the 31st of December, 2019 in Wuhan, China.
Since the outbreak, as of November 9, 50, 459, 886 cases have been recorded globally, 1,257,523 deaths confirmed in 219 countries.
A scene from the viral video claiming drinking hot water, tea and inhaling steam can cure COVID-19.
In Nigeria, the disease has claimed 1,158 deaths from a total of 64, 184 cases while 60, 069 have been discharged as of Monday, November 9.
Findings from the WHO, shows it spreads mainly through ‘droplets generated when an infected person coughs or sneezes, or through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose.”
One of the best ways to keep safe as recommended by the WHO is to maintain the guideline which includes social distancing of at least 1 metres, and adherence to proper handwashing hygiene.
In its advice to the public titled myth busters, the global health organisation provided clarifications on some information considered as false. The above claim was among. It states that exposure to hot temperatures or temperatures higher than 25 Degree does not protect people from the COVID-19.
World Health Organisation (WHO) says hot water bath does not prevent COVID-19.
“There are currently no drugs licensed for the treatment or prevention of COVId-19,” the WHO states.
Furthermore, a professor of Immunology, Dr. Ganiyu Arinola, says the assumption that drinking hot water will rid the body of the coronavirus is untrue.
In addition, “There is no evidence that hot drinks will protect against viral infections,” says Ron Eccles, an expert in respiratory diseases at Cardiff University in the UK and former director of the Common Cold Centre, BBC reports.
Several fact-checks have previously debunked various claims attributing different hot water mix as cure of COVID-19.
SUN FM website front page showing it logo.
The logo found at the top-right edge of the viral footage is similar to that of Sun Fm 98.9/98.7. The broadcasting station is owned by the Asia Broadcasting Corporation Private Limited based in Sri Lanka.
Repeated calls to the mobile number found on the website of the media firm were not answered. An email sent to verify if the viral video emanated from them and what is the source(s) relied upon to make the claims was not replied.
The FactCheckHub has earlier found a claim presenting a cure to COVID-19 to be misleading because the medication presented was not yet certified by the appropriate bodies.
THE VERDICT
The claim suggesting that drinking of hot water six times daily, tea four times daily and inhaling of steam would help cure COVID-19 is FALSE.
There are no publicly verifiable evidence to substantiate the assertion and the World Health Organisation (WHO) is yet to announce a cure.
Wani rubutu dake yaduwa a dandalin zumunta na Whatsapp wanda ke cewa Gwamnatin Tarayya tana bada tallafi dan dan temakawa yan Najeriya.
Rubutun ya cigaba da fadin cewa tallafin na miliyan uku ne kuma gurbin mutane 9,540 kawai, kuma za’a bada tallafin ga wayanda suka fara shiga tsarin.
IKIRARI:
Gwamnatin Tarayya Ta Najeriya Ta fara bada tallafin miliyan uku-uku dan temakawa yan Najeriya.
ABUN DA MUKA GANO:
Binciken mu ya gano cewa labarin karya ne.
Duk da cewa rubutun bai tabbatar da irin yadda tallafin yake ba, amma cibiyar ICIR ta ziyarci fejin yanar gizo dake yada likau din shiga tsarin dan tabbatar da gaskiyar labarin.
Wakilin mu da ya bibiyi likau din shiga tsarin mai suna “bonanzaoffers.xyz”. Bacin shigarsa fejin sai wani allo ya bayyana yana dauke da cewa ” Muna taya ka murna da shigowa wannan feji kuma muna ma albishir zaka iya samun tallafin biliyan 75 daga Gwamnatin Tarayya”, zuke fadawa wakilin mu.
Aka cigaba da yi masa tambayoyi akan dalilin da yasa yake so ya shiga tsarin; da kuma adadin da mutun yake so ya nema, tare da neman sanin ta yaya kasan tsarin. Kuma duka tambayoyin suna dauke da zabi daban-daban.
Cikin dakiku hudu da danna “Turawa”. Kawai sai aka aikowa wakilin ICIR cewa ya samu nasarar shiga jerin wayanda suka samu nasarar samun tallafin.
Amma dan sakin kudun sai akace dashi sai ya turawa abokansa ko kuma zaurukan Whatsapp guda goma Sha Biyu. A cewar fejin yanar gizon, yin haka zai bawa sauran yan Najeriya su ci moriyar tsarin.
Duk da haka, sai ICIR ta gudanar da wani bincike ta amfan da fejin kowace tambaya wato”Google” inda tai tambaya kamar haka, dan gano gaskiyar tsarin bada tallafin na Gwamnatin Tarayya; ” tallafin biliyan 75 na Gwamnatin Tarayya”.
Saidai amsar ta nuna tsarin tallafin farfado da Kanana da Matsakaitan Sana’oi wato (MSMEs) wanda ake kira da ” MSME Survival Fund.
Tsarin an samoshi ne daga kwamitin daurewar tattalin arziki wanda aka yishi dan tsara yadda za’a magace irin kalubalen da annobar cutar sarkewar numfashi ta coronavirus pandemic ta kawo na tabar-barewar tattalin arziki.
Tsarin da aka tsara za’a gudanar dashi tsawon wata uku, farawa da watan Tara na 2020, wanda Ma,aikatar Kasuwanci, Ciniki Da Zuba Jari Ta Tarayya zata kula dashi. Inda ake sa ran yan kasa da kamfanunuwa miliyan 1.7, wanda kaso 45 na wayanda za suci gajiyar tsarin matane masu Sana’oi, kaso biyar 5 kuma masu bukata ta musamman.
Wani tsarin biliyan 75 na Gwamnatin Tarayya da ICIR ta gano yayin binciken ta, shine Asusun Zuba Jari Na Matasa wato “Nigerian Youth Investment Fund (NYIF) wanda yake karkashin kulawar Maaikatar Matasa Da Cigaban Wasani Ta Tarayya. Tsarin da babban bankin Najeriya wato CBN sai dinga tallafa da kudaden gudanarshi, zai dauki tsawon shekara uku yana tallafar Kasuwanci matasa a Najeriya.
Tsarin na bashi ne, wanda ke dauke da kaso 5 na kudin ruwa a shekara da kuma za’a biya cikin shekara biyar dake dauke da uzurin watanni Sha Biyu. Inda dai daikun mutane da kasuwaci mara rijista zai iya karbar kudi har kimanin dubu 250’000, inda kuma kamfanunuwan matasa masu rijista zasu iya karbar kudi har miliyan uku.
Wannan shine hanyoyin da kirkirarran fejin yanar gizon yake bi yayin tambayar daidaikun mutanen suke so su karba daga dubu #200’000 har miliyan uku.
Su waye yan damfarar?
Cibiyar ICIR tabi diddigin fejin yanar gizon na karya dan samo bayanan mamallakansa ta hanyar amfani da manhajar yanar gizo ta Whois.net.
Har izuwa yanzu da muke hada wannan rahoto, ba wani bayani na fejin, kamar yadda aka saba gani a sauran fejikan yanar gizo.
Duk da cewa binciken mu be gano ko a ina kuma su waye suka kirkiri fejin yanar gizon ba. Amma mun gano an kirkiri fejin yanar gizon ranar 08/05/2020 kuma an debar masa tsawon shekara guda yana gudana.
Sauran bayanai da suka hadarwa nambar waya da akwatin karta kwana na yanar gizo wato “email” duka babu su.
HUKUNCI:
Labarin KARYA NE, kuma fejin yanar gizon ba wai kawai kirkirarre bane, amma samar dashi dan yada labarai marasa tushe.
A ranar Litini 2 ga watan Sha Daya, 2020, fejin yanar gizo na kaida halinka da dama ne a Najeriya suka rawaito cewa shugaban Hukumar Lafiya Ta Duniya WHO, Tedros Ghebreyesus ya kamu da cutar sarkewar numfashi ta COVID-19.
Wasu daga cikin fejikan da suka wallafa rahoton sun hadarwa Sahelstandard, Bioreports, Naijanews, Business247news da kuma Sunrise.
Kafofin yad’a labaran sun ce shugaban Hukumar Lafiya Ta Duniya WHO da kanshi ya sanar da halin da yake kan cutar a fejin sa na Twitter.
“An auna shugaban Hukumar Lafiya Ta Duniya WHO Tedros Ghebreyesus, kuma awon ya nuna ya kamu da cutar sarkewar numfashi ta coronavirus”.
Inda rahoton Naijanews yake cewa; “Shugaban Hukumar Lafiya Ta Duniya WHO ya sanar da halin da yake ciki a cikin jerin takaitattun gajerun wallafe-wallafe da yayi akan tabbataccen fejin na Twitter”
IKIRARI:
Wai shugaban Hukumar Lafiya Ta Duniya WHO Ya Kamu Da Cutar Sarkewar Numfashi Ta COVID-19.
ABINDA MUKA GANO:
FactCheckHub ta duba gajerun takaitattun wallafe-wallafe da shugaban Hukumar Lafiya Ta Duniya WHO yayi, musamman wanda masu fejinkan kaida halinka suka dogara dashi wajen rubuta rahoton su.
A ranar 1 ga watan Sha Daya,2020. Shugaban WHO, Tedros Ghebreyesus ya rubuta a Twitter cewa; an gano nayi alaka da wani da aka gano ya kamu da cutar sarkewar numfashi ta COVID-19.
Ghebreyesus bai rubata an aunashi yana da cutar sarkewar numfashi ta COVID-19 acikin rubutunsa na Twitter ba.
Yadai kawai ce zai killace kansa a yan kwanakin nan gani halin da ake ciki.
Haka kuma, a washe garin ranar 2 ga watan Sha Daya, 2020. Hukumar Lafiya Ta Duniya WHO ta bayyana gaskiyar halin da ake ciki akan cece kucen dake yawo kan shugaban hukumar na halin dake ciki akan cutar sarkewar numfashi ta COVID-19.
WHO ta tabbatar da cewa Ghebreyesus bai kamu da cutar sarkewar numfashi ta COVID-19 ba.
FactCheckHub ya rawaito cewa mambobin WHO sun zabi dan kasar Habasha, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus yayin taron Zauren Lafiya Na Duniya, karo na bakwai, a watan biyar na shekarar 2017.
HUKUNCI:
KARYA NE cewar shugaban Hukumar Lafiya Ta Duniya WHO, Tedros Ghebreyesus ya kamu da cutar sarkewar numfashi ta COVID-19; kawai dai yayi alaka da mutumin da wani mutum da aka gano yana da cutar.
A ranar Laraba, 28 ga watan Goma, 2020, kafafen yad’a labarai da dama a Najeriya ne suka rawaito cewa Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala ta zama shugabar Kungiyar Cinikayya Ta Duniya WTO.
Okonjo-Iweala tsohuwar ministan kudi ce, haka kuma tsohuwar ministan gudanarwa ce ta tattalin arzikin Najeriya.
Ita da Yoo Myung-Hee ta kasar Koriya ta kudu ne suka rage dake fafatawa wurin neman kujerar shugabancin WTO.
IKIRARI
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala ta zama shugabar Kungiyar Cinikayya Ta Duniya WTO
BINCIKE
A binciken da FactCheckHub yayi ya nuna rahoton KARYA NE.
Vanguard Newspaper dake da miliyoyin mabiya ta rawaito labarin cewa Okonjo-Iweala ta zama shugabar WTO.
Wata sabuwar kafar labarai ta People Gazette itama ta wallafa makamancin labari akan Okonjo-Iweala ta dare kujerar shugabancin WTO.
Cikin kankanin lokaci rahoton ya samu mutane 2,600 da suka nuna sonsu da rahoton, inda kimanin mutane 1,800 suka yad’a labarin dake a fejin @GazetteNGR na Twitter. Inda aka fara koka labarin tare da tura sakon taya murna.
People Gazette ta ayyana tare da yin togaciya a rahoton ta, da labarin da Gidan talabijin na Arise Television yayi tun farko da misalin karfe 12:30 na yamma na ranar Laraba (28 ga watan Goma).
Newswire ma tabi sahu, amma ta sabunta labarin ta daga baya, bacin da aka fara kalubalantar kafafen yad’a labarai kan dalilin da yasa suka zabi cewa suyi rahoton batare da jiran WTO ta sanar a hukumance ba.
Har izuwa yanzu da muke tattara binciken mu, ba wani bayani a hukumance dake cewa Okonjo-Iweala ta zama shugabar WTO koda a fejukan WTO na sada zumunta.
LABARIN IZUWA YANZU….
A ranar 28 ga watan Goma, gun mambobin WTO sun bada shawarar nada Okonjo-Iweala matsayin wadda zata jagorancin WTO, amma kasar Amurka tayi watsi da haka.
Kafar yad’a labarai ta Bloomberg ta rawaito cewa inba dan matsayar kasar Amurka ba, da tuni WTO ta gabatar da tsohuwar ministan kudi ta Najeriya amatsayin sabuwar shugabarta.
Duk da cewa Okonjo-Iweala ruwa biyu ce, Najeriya-Amurka, amma kasar Amurka ta ayyana yar takarar Koriya ta kudu Yoo Myung-Hee amatsayin zabinta. Gwamnatin Amurka ta koka kan cewa fadar Washington ba zata dau yar Najeriya ba, amatsayin wadda zata jagorancin WTO ba. Duk da shawarar babban zauren bai daya na Kungiyar kan Okonjo-Iweala.
Har izuwa yanzu da muke tattara binciken mu ba wata sanarwa a hukumance dake ayyana Okonjo-Iweala matsayin sabuwar shugabar WTO. Kuma babu wani bayani hakan akan fejin su na twitter@wto ko fejin su na yanar gizo.
Saboda matsayar Amurka, zauren bai daya dake da alhakin gudanar da zaben ya daga sanar da sabuwar shugabar har sai 9 ga watan Sha Daya na 2020.
Wannan ba shine karan farko da labarai marasa tushe akan takarar neman kujerar shugabancin WTO ke kara-kaina a fejukan yanar gizo ba. FactCheckHub ya bankado irin wannan labarai a lokuta mabambanta a watan bakwai nan da watan Goma nan wanda duka basu da tushe.
HUKUNCI
Duba da irin bayanai dake akwai, babu wani bayani a hukumance da zai tabbatar da ikirarin cewa Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala ta zama shugabar WTO. Dan haka labarin KARYA NE.
Kawai dai zauren bai daya na WTO ya bada zabinta.
Samunta:
A watan Fabrairu 2021 ne aka tabbatar da Okonjo-Iweala a matsayin Shugabar Kungiyar Cinikayya Ta Duniya WTO
SEVERAL Nigerian blogs on Monday, November 2, 2020 reported that the Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Ghebreyesus, has tested positive for COVID-19.
The news blogs claimed that the DG disclosed his COVID-19 status via his official Twitter page.
“Tedros Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the World Health Organisation, has tested positive for Coronavirus.
“The DG of WHO announced his status in a series of tweets on his verified account,” says the Naijanews’ report.
THE CLAIM:
That the Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Ghebreyesus, has tested positive for COVID-19.
THE FINDINGS:
The FactCheckHub checked the tweets made by the WHO DG, particularly the ones the bloggers relied on to write their report.
The WHO chief, Tedros Ghebreyesus, tweeted on his Twitter page on November 1, 2020 that he has been identified as a contact of someone who tested positive for COVID-19.
Ghebreyesus did not, in any part of the tweets, said that he tested positive for COVID-19.
He only said he would self-quarantine over the coming days due to the development.
Similarly, the World Health Organization (WHO), had in a tweet on November 2, 2020 cleared air on the rumour surrounding the COVID-19 status of its DG.
WHO affirmed that Ghebreyesus hasn’t tested positive for COVID-19.
The FactCheckHubreports that the Ethiopian, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, was elected as WHO Director-General for a five-year term by WHO Member States at the Seventieth World Health Assembly in May 2017.
THE VERDICT:
The claim is FALSE, as the Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Tedros Ghebreyesus, has not tested positive for COVID-19; he only had contact with someone who tested positive for the disease.
A viral claim which says that ‘Railway’ is recruiting 50,000 people for temporary job placements has surfaced online.
The post, as seen in a WhatsApp group, reads in part: “Railway has announced vacancies for 50,000 young people across the country for data collection. Submit your application.”
The post included a link for the application.
The claim did not specify which ‘railway’, but it was circulated and has gone viral within the Nigerian cybersphere. As such people are bound to assume that it is the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) – which is the only railway in Nigeria.
THE CLAIM
That the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) is recruiting 50,000 workers.
Screenshot of the claim circulating online.
THE FINDINGS
Checks by the FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE.
The railway system in Nigeria is government owned and it is called the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC). It is a Federal Government-owned public railway transport system.
During the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, the railway system in Nigeria experienced a significant boost when in 2014 he signed a $12 billion deal with the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) to construct a 1,400-kilometre railway in the country.
His successor, President Muhammadu Buhari, continued with the work in the sector by securing a $7.5 billion loan in 2017 to construct the Lagos-Ibadan rail project.
“Accordingly, I have approved the prioritisation of viable railway routes for either new rail lines or the reconstruction and rehabilitation of some, to achieve effective and efficient train services supporting the country’s trade and commerce,” Buhari said at the commissioning of a 326 kilometres Itakpe-Ajaokuta-Warri rail line in September 2020.
The projects, when completed among others things, are expected to provide job opportunities.
A disclaimer on the Nigeria Railway Corporation’s website
Is NRC really planning to engage 50,000 people on a temporary basis?
As part of the verification process, the FactCheckHub visited the link included in the claim, and the next page shows a webpage entirely different from the NRC.
Even though the website has the secured sign icon, it is not related to the country’s railway service.
In a phone conversation with the FactCheckHub, Yakub Mahmoud, the NRC Public Relations Officer (PRO) dismissed the report as fake.
“It is not true. It is completely false,” Mahmoud said.
In addition, the NRC had issued a disclaimer on the recruitment claim.
“That NRC is currently not recruiting” it reads in part.
THE VERDICT:
The claim that the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) is recruiting 50,000 persons for a temporary job is FALSE.
A viral ‘forwarded-as-received’ post has been spread across WhatsApp platforms, with the accompanying claim that the federal government is giving out grants to support Nigerians.
The post with a registration link attached to it advanced that the N3 million grant only has 9540 slots available for grabs by Nigerians on a first-come, first-serve basis.
THE CLAIM:
That the federal government is giving out N3million grants to support Nigerians.
THE FINDINGS:
Findings show that the claim is false.
Although the post did not specify the kind of grant, The ICIR visited the website through the acclaimed registration link to confirm the veracity of the claim.
The first red flag sighted by this reporter was how the ‘Bitly’ shortened link changed to “bonanzaoffers.xyz”. After gaining access to the page, another message popped up, congratulating the reporter for visiting the page and standing a chance to “benefit from the 75 billion federal government grant”.
The website went further by asking questions on why a visitor would want to apply for the grant; the amount the visitor would like to apply for; and how a visitor knows about the scheme. These questions are accompanied by varying options.
The ICIR ticked ‘start a new business’ and a verification process which took only four seconds emerged. Having been verified, another message popped up, congratulating the reporter for being “successfully shortlisted” to have access to the grant.
But for the grant to be disbursed, the website asked the reporter to share the claim to twelve WhatsApp groups or friends. This, according to the pop-up message, is to enable other Nigerians to benefit from the scheme.
However, The ICIR conducted a google search using keywords like “75 billion federal government grants” to ascertain the federal government grants initiative.
It turned out to be a post-COVID-19 stimulus package for Micros, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) termed “ MSME survival fund.”
The scheme is a product of the Economic Sustainability Committee Plan aimed at developing a plan to respond to the challenges posed by the economic shock of the Coronavirus pandemic.
The grant which is scheduled to run for an initial period of three months, starting from September 2020, is handled by the federal ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment. It targets 1.7 million entities and individuals across the country, of which 45 percent of the beneficiary would be female-owned enterprises, 5 per cent for businesses owned by people living with disabilities.
Another federal government’s package of 75billion found by The ICIR during the search was the Nigerian Youth Investment Fund (NYIF) under the auspices of the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development. The initiative which is funded by the central bank of Nigeria will spread over three years to cater to youth-owned businesses and investment needs.
However, the fund is a loan package with an interest rate of 5% per annum and a tenor of 5 years with a moratorium of up to 12 months. The announcement added that an individual or non-registered business could draw up to 250,000 Naira while youth-owned registered businesses could apply for up to 3 Million Naira.
This is the arrangement the phoney website cloned when it asked for the amount an individual would like to apply for within the range from #200,000 to 3 million.
Who are the impostors?
The ICIR queried the existence of the hoax website through Whois.net to check the website domain information.
As at the time of filing this report, all forms of information always attached to any website is not available for this website in question.
However, while this check can not explicitly state who and where the website was registered, investigation shows the website was created on 08-05-2020 and scheduled to expire a year after.
Other information about the registrant of the website, such as the phone number and email are also not available.
THE VERDICT:
The claim is FALSE. The website used as the conveyor belt is not only fictitious but also designed to spread false information.
An image of shrouded bodies has been posted multiple times on social media with the claim that it shows casualties from the Lekki toll gate incident which took place on October 20, 2020.
A Facebook user, Emmanuel Rowland, posted the photograph with the caption, “Lekki shooting dead bodies”. The post has been shared over 552 times as at 7:00pm on October 28, 2020.
The picture was also tweeted by a Twitter user, @AdeolaAminu, who later deleted it.
A screenshot of a tweet misinforming the public.
THE CLAIM:
That photo shows casualties from the Lekki Toll Gate incident which happened on October 20, 2020.
THE FINDINGS:
Checks by the FactCheckHub show that the picture is FALSE.
The image predates the Lekki Toll Gate incident and it is of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) popularly referred to as Shi’ites and not of persons protesting Police brutality in Lekki area of Lagos, Nigeria.
Several misleading posts flooded the internet following the aftermath of Tuesday, October 20, 2020, when it was reported that there were gunshots at the Lekki toll gate.
The Lekki toll gate was the epicenter of the protests against police brutality and bad governance under the #EndSARS movement that had rocked the country for days.
The FactCheckHub had earlier fact-checked one of such pictures.
To verify the claim that the image with shrouded bodies are casualties from the #EndSARS protest, the FactCheckHub conducted a reverse image search on the picture using image verification tools such as Google and TinEye.
The findings revealed that the picture was online as far back as November 2, 2018.
The New York Times had used the picture which was credited to Afolabi Sotunde – a Reuters photographer – in a report.
“Members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria preparing the bodies of members killed when the Nigerian Army opened fire during the group’s protests in the capital Abuja this week. Credit: Afolabi Sotunde/Reuters,” the caption of the picture read.
The picture was also used to illustrate news of the incident published by ABC News and CBCNews .
The FactCheckHub also reached out to the photographer, Afolabi Sotunde, who confirmed that he took the photo in 2018.
He said the image shows the burial preparations for bodies of members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria who died as a result of a clash with the Nigerian Army.
“I took the picture for Reuters sometimes in November 2018, when the members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria who were shot by the Nigerian Army were being prepared for burial,” Sotunde told the FactCheckHub in a telephone conversation.
THE VERDICT:
The claim is FALSE. The picture is that of members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria who were killed in 2018 and not from the Lekki Toll Gate incident that happened in 2020.
After gaining access to the page, another message popped up, congratulating the reporter for visiting the page and standing a chance to “benefit from the 75 billion federal government grant”.
