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.
On December 4, 2023, a Facebook user named Nweke Makojo Global claimed that there’s an ongoing construction of a skyscraper in Onueke, Ebonyi state, Nigeria.
The post has an image of a tall building with scaffold.
“The ongoing construction of skyscraper in Onueke Ebonyi state,” the caption reads.
As of December 8, the post has garnered over 20,000 likes, more than 5,000 comments and 460 shares.
A skyscraper, according to Britannica.com, is a very tall multistoried building. The termskyscraper originally applied to buildings of 10 to 20 stories, but by the late 20th century the term was used to describe high-rise buildings of unusual height, generally greater than 40 or 50 stories.
CLAIM
Image shows an ongoing construction of a skyscraper in Onueke, Ebonyi state.
THE FINDINGS
Checks show that the claim is MISLEADING.
To verify the source of the image, this journalist subjected the image to Reverse Image Search on Yandex, Google Lens and TinEye.
The results showed that the image has been on the internet since at least 2012.
The image was used in an article published on October 23, 2012, by the Traveling Trini to illustrate a bamboo scaffolding.
The same image had also surfaced on Pinterest.com, where it was attributed to bamboo scaffolding in Hong Kong, China as seen here.
Also, the photo is published on Adobe.com as a stock image as seen here, with a caption that reads: “Building in Hong Kong is under reconstruction, surrounded by scaffolding from bamboo….”
Similarly, it was also posted on 9gag.com in December 2021 and referenced by an Instagram user, @redhongyi in another post published in January 2023 here.
When the image was subjected to further Google search using some keywords, it did not made the list of infrastructural projects listed in Ebonyi state as seen here.
Screenshot of the geo-location showing Onueke, in Ebonyi state, Nigeria.
Lastly, a geo-location search of Onueke in the state aimed at identifying such structure also did not show any skyscraper in the community.
THE VERDICT
The claim that the image shows ongoing construction of a skyscraper in Onueke, Ebonyi state is MISLEADING; as findings revealed that it has been published multiple times and referenced as a bamboo scaffolding in Hong Kong.
An X user, @praisroghre, has shared a video showing Ramon Olorunwa Abbas popularly called Hushpuppi at an airport with a claim that the U.S.-convicted fraudster has been released from prison.
The video caption reads: “Hushpuppi’s been released from jail, let’s hope he has learnt from his mistakes.”
Currently serving a jail term in the United States, the notorious fraudster was arrested by Interpol in Dubai in 2020 alongside other members of an internet fraud syndicate. He was extradited to the United States where he was tried for money laundering.
In 2021, Hushpuppi was sentenced to 11 years imprisonment in the US for his role in an international fraud syndicate and ordered to pay $1,732,841 in restitution to two victims.
The claim, posted on November 30, 2023, has generated over 2.2 million views, more than 2,600 reposts, over 8,000 likes and about 1,000 comments on X as of December 8, 2023. The footage had also garnered over 1.7 million views on TikTok since it was posted there by a user: @joseph.teezer on November 5, 2023.
CLAIM
Video shows Hushpuppi being released from jail.
Screenshot of the viral claim with the video posted by an X user. INSERT: False verdict.
THE FINDINGS
Checks by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE.
A look at the video shows that it has two watermarks. One is the watermark of the account that posted it on TikTok and the other shows the water mark of the platform that published the original video.
The FactCheckHub tracked the original video to the TikTok account and subjected keyframes obtained from it to Google Reverse Image search. The results show that the video was first uploaded on YouTube in 2018 by iLiteTV during Hushpuppi’s birthday in Cyprus, prior to his arrest in 2020.
This is not the first time that misleading information would circulate regarding Hushpuppi. In September 2023, a picture showing the Abbas at the airport surfaced online with a claim that he has been released. Findings, however, showed that the image was taken out of context to lend credibility to the rumour.
Africa Check had, last year, also debunked similar viral false information and image regarding his release.
Hushpuppi was to serve 11 years imprisonment. He’s not expected to be released until he has exhausted his jail term. There was also no credible local or international media organisations that reported its purported release.
THE VERDICT
The claim that Hushpuppi has been released from jail is FALSE; findings revealed that the footage has been online since 2018 before his arrest.
Stakeholders in the Nigerian information space have urged media organisations to play crucial role in countering misinformation and hate speech by upholding ethical standards in their news reporting and analysis.
Delivering a keynote address at the public launch of the iVerify fact-checking platform on Wednesday in Abuja, the chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, tasked media owners and publishers to tackle the menace of hate speech to sustain peace and unity in the country.
The INEC chairman, represented by the acting Director, Voter Education, Mrs. Mary Nkem said hate speech has the potential to deepen societal rifts and increase tensions within communities while inciting violence and discrimination against targeted groups.
“Hate speech poses significant dangers in the electoral process. When introduced into political discourse, hate speech has the potential to incite divisiveness, bigotry, and violence, and to erode the principles of democracy and equality,” he said.
Professor Yakubu noted that in combating hate speech, it is necessary to involve various stakeholders, including political leaders, civil society organizations, media outlets, and the general public.
In his welcome remark, the Executive Director of International Press Centre (IPC), Lanre Arogundade, stated that the iVerify project was launched by the IPC to strengthen the fight against the information disorder illustrated by rising disinformation, misinformation, mal-information and hate speech, especially in the electoral and democratic processes.
Arogundade highlighted that the major components of the iVerify project includes capacity building for journalists on fact-checking of electoral information and the democratic processes, promotion of media literacy and engagement in public enlightenment to combat information disorder, amongst others.
“The effort at curbing disinformation will not bring about the desired result if the concept of media literacy is not fully embraced as a way of educating journalists, other media professionals and the public, hence it is an important part of the iVerify project,” he said.
Also speaking at the event, INEC spokesperson, Rotimi Oyekanmi, noted that it is crucial for journalists to research extensively before writing their reports in order to not be an actor in information disorder as most individuals tend to read only the headlines and a few paragraphs before sharing it to their counterparts.
“You have this information; how do you determine whether it is true or not, that is where iVerify comes in. As journalists, we need to continue to read extensively, we need to research extensively and there are various source through which you can verify issues,” he said.
The event ended with a panel discussion on: Role of media and institutional stakeholders in enhancing information integrity moderated by the deputy director of CJID, Busola Ajibola with notable speakers selected from online and traditional media, including regulatory agencies such as the National Broadcasting Commission etc.
A recent Netskope study has shown that up to half of Britons find it difficult to differentiate AI-fabricated news items and websites, despite prior claims of ability.
501 individuals from the UK took an online quiz created by Netskope to test their ability to distinguish between content generated by artificial intelligence (AI) and authentic information.
The regions with the highest failure rates—63.6%, 62.5%, and 61.5%, respectively—were determined to be Greater London, East Midlands, and the North East. At 37.1%, the Southeast was shown to be the most perceptive region when it came to spotting false online information.
Additionally, Netskope outlined the fake news scenario for 2023 with this study. Even while the population in the UK believes that tabloids, newspapers, and video-based platforms like TikTok and Snapchat provide accurate news, 84% of British people said they are confident in their ability to identify fake news.
However, half of the respondents crossed the obstacle when presented with a fictitious AI news piece alongside a genuine one. The Southeast was the most cynical, with 63% correctly recognizing the fake news, while residents of Greater London demonstrated the greatest credulity, with 64% misidentifying the true story.
The study also highlighted the most common fake AI news stories of 2023 to be an image of Pope Francis wearing an enormous white puffy coat; a fake photo of Donald Trump being arrested in downtown Washington DC; and a story claiming an AI drone had killed its human operator were the top three misinformation operations using metrics like social views, engagement, published articles, reach, and authority.
The quick development of AI technology makes it challenging to identify fake news content generated by AI technology. Seeking original sources, using reverse image searches, examining image dimensions for consistency and abnormalities, and keeping an eye on video size and subtitle placements for possible deepfake AI software usage are some of Netskope’s recommendations for telling fact from fiction.
The FactCheckHub has published tutorials on how to identify AI-generated images. You can learn how to here and here.
An X user, @emirsirdam, has claimed that the United Kingdom has officially recognized Nigeria as an Islamic country.
He claimed in a post on the X app (formerly Twitter) on November 22, 2023, and it has garnered over 200,000 views, more than 1,300 reposts, and over 1,700 likes since then.
The post read:
BREAKING: UK officially recognize Nigeria as an Islamic State Nigeria has been sold to the dogs, our colonial Masters now refer to Nigeria as an Islamic State...
The post was published alongside two screenshots from a press release allegedly from the official website of the United Kingdom’s government.
The claim was made after UK Foreign Secretary, David Cameron hosted a delegation of Foreign Ministers from Arab and Islamic countries in London. The essence of the talks with the Arab-Islamic Ministerial Committee centered on finding a long-term political solution to the issue, securing the release of all hostages, and increasing the flow of humanitarian supplies into Gaza.
As a member of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) since 1986, Nigeria was among the countries hosted by the foreign secretaries.
The organization endeavours to safeguard and protect the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international peace and harmony among various people of the world which could be deduced from the meeting with the UK Foreign Secretary.
CLAIM
UK officially recognizes Nigeria as an Islamic State.
THE FINDINGS
Checks by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is MISLEADING!
According to Statista, it is estimated that over half of the population in Nigeria are Muslims. According to an estimate of Nigeria’s religious distribution from 2018, the total percentage of people practicing Islam is 53.5% while people practicing Christianity is 45.9%.
AbdulJelil Egbewole, a lawyer and legal associate at Y.C. Maikyau & co (a private law firm) in Abuja, said that “for a country to be considered as an Islamic state, it means they are governed by Sharia law.”
As of 2012, and up till now, twelve states in Northern Nigeria practice Shari’a law, namely Zamfara, Kano, Sokoto, Katsina, Bauchi, Borno, Jigawa, Yobe, Niger, Gombe, Kaduna and Kebbi.
“If a country is referred to as an Islamic state, it doesn’t mean that everyone in that country identifies as a Muslim or is practicing Islam; it just shows that there is a higher percentage of people practicing Islam in the country and they are governed by Shari’a law,” the lawyer explained.
Yunus Adelodun, a UK-based Nigerian lawyer who specializes in Arbitration, Litigation, Data Protection and Privacy, also shared the same view with Egbewole.
“It only means perhaps a substantial number of people there are Muslims or adopts Islamic law as its governing law,” Barrister Adelodun said.
THE VERDICT
The claim that UK officially recognizes Nigeria as an Islamic state is MISLEADING; it is taken out of context as Islamic states are countries that practice Shari’a law. Nigeria was part of the delegation as the nation is a member state of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC).
NIGERIA’s Senate President, Godswill Akpabio has claimed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu grew Lagos state’s monthly Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) from N600 million to N59 billion.
Akpabio made the claim in his welcome address delivered during the presentation of the nation’s 2024 budget by Tinubu on Wednesday, November 29, 2023. He recounted the achievements of Tinubu prior to and after becoming Nigeria’s president.
President Tinubu, had on Wednesday presented a budget of N27.5 trillion for the 2024 fiscal year to the joint session of the National Assembly in Abuja, the nation’s capital. The budget is christened the ‘Budget of Renewed Hope.’
Delivering the welcome address, the Senate President said, “We need to acknowledge the specific achievements of Mr. President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration so far. Those who doubted him, initially, forgot his track record as the Governor of Lagos State, Nigeria’s melting pot (sic).
“They forgot his various economic reforms that helped attract investments and promoted economic growth; improved the ease of doing business; promoted pro-business policies; and attracted foreign direct investment, not to mention today’s robust internally generated revenue which he grew as the Governor of Lagos from N600 million to today’s N59 billion. Nigerians believe you are the man for the job of fixing our economy (sic).”
CLAIM
Tinubu grew Lagos state monthly Internally Generated Revenue from N600 million to N59 billion.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE.
The Internally Generated Revenue is the sum total of all revenues accruing to a Nigerian state from its own sources, excluding grants, subventions and other receipts from the federal government.
It’is often obtained from various sources such as Pay As Your Earn (PAYE), transport taxes, personal income taxes and LGAs revenues, among others.
Checks show that Tinubu, had, in 2022 bragged about raising IGR of Lagos from N600 million monthly in 1999 when he assumed the office as the governor of Lagos state to N8 billion when he left the office. That claim has already been debunked here by the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD).
Contrary to Akpabio’s claim, data quoted by BudgiT in its report titled “What we know about Lagos Finances” published in 2018 show that the monthly Internally Generated Revenue of Lagos state was N14.6 billion in 1999, representing a monthly average of N1.2 billion.
Lagos IGR from 1999 to 2018. CREDITS: BudgiT
This tallies with data cited by a journal published in the Research Academy of Social Sciences which also show that Lagos state recorded an annual IGR of N14.6 billion in 1999.
On the current IGR of Lagos state, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) recently reported that the state generated N651bn (651,145,633,085.30) in 2022 which amounts to N54 billion monthly. This is lower than the N59 billion quoted by Akpabio in his speech.
THE VERDICT
The claim by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, that Tinubu grew Lagos monthly IGR from N600 million to N59 billion is FALSE; data show that the IGR figures were inaccurate for both years.
A video which claims that a Nigerian doctor has found cure for high blood pressure (HBP) has circulated multiple times on the internet.
The claim which could be seen here, here and here had the logo of Channels Television, including a footage with one of its presenters, Kayode Okikiolu.
In the thirty-three second footage, the presenter could be seen talking about the alleged ‘cure’.
A Nigerian doctor has created drug that normalizes blood pressure in three days and in just one course of treatments, your body will be completely healthy and you would forget about blood pressure problems forever.
At about 12 seconds into the footage, the scene changed from that of the presenter to the ‘doctor who created the drug’ giving his testimonial about the cure.
I guarantee that after the first use of the product, your blood pressure would normalize , there would be no cholesterol in your blood vessels, hypertension would disappear forever, the risk of stroke and heart attack would be reduced to zero. Nigerians have already tried the drug and got rid of hypertension. Join the hypertension treatment programme.
The footage also had the signature tune of Channels TV news with a caption thus:
shocking discovery: 4 out of 6 people with high blood pressure can permanently lose their sight.
It also contained other typical features peculiar to Channels TV such as the color, the breaking news/headline news ticker showing time and scrolling texts.
Multiple versions of the clip, including the one archived here have also been circulating.
Screenshot of the viral claim. INSERT: FALSE verdict
CLAIM
Nigerian doctor finds cure for high blood pressure.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE!
Although there isn’t a cure for high blood pressure, patients can still make meaningful changes in their lives, such as changing their lifestyle and taking their doctors’ recommended BP-lowering medications, both organisations claimed. They added that these adjustments can thereby improve their quality of life and lower their risk of stroke, heart disease, and other conditions.
The FactCheckHub spoke with Dr Muneerah Owolabi, a medical officer at the 063 Nigerian Air Force Hospital in Abuja. She confirmed that though essential hypertension cannot be cured, it can be controlled with medicine and a change in lifestyle.
“Essential hypertension is not curable but can be managed with lifestyle modification and medications. Medications can be reviewed based on subsequent blood pressure readings. Secondary hypertension on the other hand, its cause can be identified and managed thereby curing the hypertension.
“For example, a patient with renal artery stenosis that undergoes revascularization or a patient with hyperthyroidism that undergoes thyroidectomy,” she explained.
Also, a careful look at the footage shows that the audio and visual aren’t in sync from the beginning of the clip till the end, though the head and facial features appeared to be in motion.
A look also at the footage at 12 seconds where the ‘doctor’ was introduced, shows the same features/qualities as of when the presenter was speaking initially.
A careful scrutiny of the video also showed that the backdrop of the video was backwards which translates to the video being flipped which is a common mechanism when individuals try to manipulate videos to make it difficult to identify the source of the video.
When this researcher conducted a search on YouTube with the keywords ‘Nigerian doctor finds cure for high blood pressure Channels TV’, the results led us to a 25-minute footage of Health Matters episode, a health-focused programme on Channels TV. The footage is titled: Causes of high blood pressure and how to prevent it.
Speaking on why doctored videos are on the rise and why health misinformation is dangerous to the society, Silas Jonathan, a fact-checker and researcher with Dubawa said the proliferation of advanced technology, such as AI and digital tools, coupled with widespread mobile internet accessibility, has significantly contributed to the surge in manipulated videos.
“Individuals can effortlessly employ AI tools to create deepfakes or utilize free online resources to modify authentic videos. The persuasive impact of visuals makes them a readily available tool for those aiming to deceive the public, as people tend to trust what they see, making altered videos a convenient means of manipulation,” he stated.
Jonathan added: “The commercialization of the online sphere has taken a notable turn. The familiar tactic of prompting users with “like and share” to engage with content for profit has evolved. Now, manipulated videos are employed to capture users attention, fostering interaction and, ultimately, driving profits.”
He noted that health misinformation can be incredibly harmful because it misguides people about medical treatments, preventative measures, or even the nature of certain illnesses.
“It can lead individuals to make decisions that endanger their health, delay necessary medical care, or even cause them to pursue ineffective or harmful treatments. In society, widespread health misinformation can erode trust in healthcare professionals and institutions, creating confusion and potentially worsening public health outcomes,” he opined.
THE VERDICT
The claim that a Nigerian doctor has found a cure for high blood pressure is FALSE; there is no cure for cancer, according to multiple health sources as the footage is clearly a manipulated video.
YouTube, a video-streaming platform owned by Google, has unveiled plans to combat the spread of misleading content in the lead-up to India’s 2024 general elections.
This was disclosed by YouTube India Director, Ishan Chatterjee,at a recent virtual interaction with the press.
According to him, the platform plans to remove misleading content and provide users with access to high-quality news by collaborating with reputable news publishers and independent journalists.
He emphasized the platform’s commitment to addressing misinformation. He explained that their policies dictate action against content that has been technologically manipulated to deceive users and poses a real-world harm risk.
He added that the second part of YouTube’s strategy focuses on ensuring users’ access to reliable and high-quality news content produced by news organizations and independent journalists.
Director, global head of responsibility at YouTube, Timothy Katz explained that the platform removes videos that could cause “real world harm” and restrict users from viewing misinformation content with no harm risk.
“Just because content is identified as being misinformation, it may or may not violate our content policies. In the example of somebody uploading a video about no human ever landing on the moon before, we think it is a video that should be allowed to be on YouTube as there is no risk of real world harm. But that doesn’t mean we want to recommend that content,” he said.
He added that videos containing misinformation on sensitive events are removed once they are identified. “The criticality of the event matters a lot. In the election, if somebody uploads a video that has misinformation about how to vote, we would remove that content from our platform.”
He expressed the platform’s commitment to serving and supporting the entire spectrum of the news ecosystem.
A claim circulating online and offline among Sierra Leoneans says that smoking a type of Cannabis popularly called ‘Kush’ in local parlance leads to swollen limbs and sores.
Sierra Leone has been struggling with the Cannabis crisis for a few years now, The Guardian and France24 have reported. In its own unique local context, several variations of Cannabis have been concocted using several experimental formulas. ‘Kush,’ as it is commonly known, has had a devastating impact on the country’s youthful population.
Dr Alpha Amadu Jalloh, Sierra Leone’s Senior Psychiatric Specialist at Kissy Psychiatric Hospital, in several public engagements including this one on Epic Radio in July 2023, said the volume of cases he has seen as a result of the Kush intake is alarming in the nation.
Similarly, Dr Mac Jajua, who works at the Connaught Hospital, one of the oldest and biggest government hospital in the country, also said that they have seen an increased number of patients with Kush-related problems show up at the hospital.
A number of other healthcare workers have also expressed similar concerns.
Sore and swellings…
Viral videos and images circulating online have shown victims of ‘Kush’ with sores on their limbs and feet. Some of the victims have also been seen with swollen limbs in addition to the sores, as seen in this viral video posted initially on TikTok and Instagram by a user named: @salonedrips. It was also reposted on Facebook by one Mahawa Bai Kamara Sillah, among other social media users.
Screenshot of the footage shows a Kush smoker with swollen legs.
The sores and swelling has been directly linked to the intake of Kush by many, including the victims themselves.
But is there any evidence to support this claim?
CLAIM
Smoking of ‘Kush’ leads to swollen limbs and sores on humans.
THE FINDINGS
Kush, according to Dictionary.com, is a variety or strain of the indicasubspecies of cannabis plant. It is a synthetic drug, an offshoot from marijuana that originated from the Hindu Kush region. It is produced using a complex chemistry by combining addictive plants and some sedatives.
To understand the effects of Kush, it is important to note that there are different types of Kush and the ingredients that are used in making a wrap of Kush.
Report indicated that scientists have identified over 700 strains of cannabis. A large amount of these strains fall under the designation of being a “Kush”.
Many youth in West Africa are turning to Kush as a recreational drug. Photo Credit: Melissa Phillip/AP.
When this researcher spoke to Dr Jajua and specifically asked him about whether there is any connection between the sores and swollen limbs found on some Kush smokers, he said the evidence so far is not conclusive.
“We have seen patients come to the hospital with Kush related problems who have shown these signs (swollen limbs and sores) and the general assumption by so many people is that they are caused by Kush.
“However, no study has been done to prove any connection between the two, so I cannot say those assumptions are conclusive in the absence of a scientific study,” Dr Jajua said.
He noted that even for cases that have led to death, the postmortem examination done by the coroner focused mainly on “Cause of death” and not necessarily to understand how Kush chemicals impacted the body.
Although Dr Jajua said there’s no conclusive evidence to show that smoking Kush causes swollen limbs and sores, it has significant effects on human brains, according to Dr Jalloh, one of the country’s leading Psychiatrist.
In August 2023, Dr Jalloh said that 63 per cent of the mental cases they deal with at the nation’s hospitals are related to Kush.
Speaking about other effects, he added that the effect on the brain can be from hallucinations, memory loss to complete psychosis for Kush addicts.
THE VERDICT
The claim that smoking of ‘Kush’ leads to swollen limbs and sores on its smokers has not been scientifically proven, though experts say it has effect on human brain such as memory loss and psychosis; thus the claim is UNPROVEN, as verifying this needs further research.
* This report was written by Mohamed Jaward Nyallay, Presenter/General Manager at Epic Radio 99.3FM in Sierra Leone under the mentorship of the Africa Facts Network Member, FactCheckHub. Africa Facts is a network of fact-checkers across the continent supported by Africa Check, Africa’s first independent fact-checking organisation.
The announcement was made in a statement on Friday, December 1, 2023. Applications would be accepted from when the announcement was made until January 8, 2024.
Over three years, the fund will support fact-checking organizations that are verified as signatories of the IFCN Code of Principles as well as collaborating organizations that are not signatories.
The statement added there were 154 IFCN-verified signatories from more than 60 countries as of April 2023.
This new programme will provide beneficiaries with up to USD 12 million in financing through different grant possibilities, divided into three tiers: up to USD 25,000, up to USD 50,000, and up to USD 100,000, part of the statement read.
It added that the fund’s goal is to improve the operational, production, and engagement capabilities of local and regional media organizations in order to raise the standard, quantity, regularity, scope, and influence of fact-checking skills and endeavours.
The statement also highlighted that it will assist qualified organizations in raising the standard of professionalism in fact-checking media outlets adhere to while also enhancing the capacity of target audiences to evaluate mass media and social media critically.
It will be recalled that the IFCN had on November 29, 2022 announced a partnership with Google and YouTube to support fact-checking initiatives worldwide and reduce the harm of misinformation.
Earlier in June 2023, the IFCN announced the 35 recipients of the first phase of the grant (BUILD phase) in which The FactCheckHub was among its selected recipients and also announced the recipients of the second phase (GROW phase) in November.
