Online misinformation has continued to trail the collation of governorship poll results and the announcement of winners by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as citizens of Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi states in Nigeria elected their state’s chief executives.
Channels TV reports that the INEC has declared the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Hope Uzodinma, as the duly re-elected governor of Imo state as well as the APC candidate, Usman Ododo, as the newly elected governor of Kogi state.
The electoral umpire on Sunday night however says it has adjourned the collation of the Bayelsa governorship poll results till Monday noon.
READ: 2023 Off-cycle elections: Claims fact-checked ahead of Nov. 11 governorship polls
“Results from six of the eight local government areas in the state namely Kolokuma/Opokuma, Ogbia, Yenegoa, Sagbama, Nembe and Ekeremor have been collated. The remaining local government areas are Brass and Southern Ijaw.
“Prof Faruq Kuta, who is the Vice Chancellor of the Federal University Of Technology, Minna, and the state Returning Officer for the election in Bayelsa adjourned the exercise on Sunday night,” Channels TV reported.
It will be recalled that a total of 18 registered political parties fielded a combined 51 governorship candidates in the 3 states in the November 11 off-cycle election. The FactCheckHub reports that 48 of them are male while 3 are female.
The Nigerian Fact-checkers’ Coalition (NFC) brings you live-check of election-related misinformation and disinformation spreading online and on television post-Election Day.
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This page is constantly being updated with verified checks. Kindly scroll downward to read the checks.
ALSO READ: Governorship polls hold in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi (LIVE-CHECK)
Here are the live-checks:
Claim 10
State: Imo State
CLAIM: Facebook and Instagram users share a video showing burning vehicles with a claim that the incumbent governor of Imo State, Hope Uzodinma, bombed the Awo Omamma Community.
FINDINGS: A keyframe analysis of the footage using the INVID video verification plug-in showed that it was captured in 2021 as seen here, and here. News reports documented that the fire incident was a result of reprisal attacks between military men and gunmen in the Ishieke junction area of the Awo Ommama community in Oru East LGA, Imo state.
VERDICT: INCORRECT
SOURCE: INVID; BBC Pidgin, and Punch
DATE: 12/11/2023
AUTHOR: Elizabeth Ogunbamowo
EDITORS: Simbiat Bakare
Claim 9
STATE: Kogi state.
CLAIM: A Facebook blog, Kogi global media, has claimed that the police arrested Olayinka Braimoh, the governorship candidate of Action Alliance (AA) in Kogi state on Election Day (Nov 11).
FINDINGS: William Ovye, the spokesperson for the Kogi State Police Command, confirmed the arrest, stating that Braimoh was apprehended on Election Day for violating the state’s movement restriction order.
VERDICT: CORRECT
SOURCES: William Ovye, Kogi Police spokesman
FACT-CHECK AUTHOR(s): Sunday Awosoro.
EDITORS: OPEYEMI KEHINDE
DATE: 12/11/2023
Claim 8
State: Imo State
CLAIM: A Facebook page, Idan News Blog, on Nov. 11 2023, shared a video showing burning shops with the claim that it emanated from the 2023 Imo State governorship election.
FINDINGS: NFC carried out a Google Reverse Image search on some of the keyframes in the footage, which showed a similar video on Nov. 23, 2021 on a Facebook page, BT Afrika, with a different context. According to the page, the damaged shops and fire are the aftermath of Nigeria soldiers’ shootout with some unknown gunmen. The Cable also reported the event.
VERDICT: INCORRECT
SOURCE: Google, The Cable
DATE: 12/11/2023
AUTHOR: Muktar Balogun
EDITORS: Bamas Victoria and Simbiat Bakare
Claim 7
State: Bayelsa State
CLAIM: “Journalist101” in an article published on its website Nov 12, 2023 claims INEC officials are held hostage in Brass LGA of Bayelsa, and the commission is seeking help.
FINDING: In a tweet shared on its official X handle, INEC confirms that its officials are held hostage in Brass LGA and has urged security agencies to come to their aid.
VERDICT: CORRECT
SOURCE: INEC
DATE: 12/11/2023
AUTHOR: Catherine Adeniyi
EDITOR: Bamas Victoria
Claim 6
State: Imo State
CLAIM: A Facebook user, CODED IQ Comedies, on Nov 10, 2023 claimed that TVC has threatened to sue Governor Hope Uzodinmma over a viral video alleging that PDP candidate Samuel Anyanwu stepped down for the incumbent governor.
FINDING: The television station issued a disclaimer that the manipulation in the video must have emerged from “unknown parties”. The television station only debunked the report and did not threaten to sue Uzodinma or anyone.
VERDICT: INCORRECT
SOURCE: TVC
DATE: 12/11/2023
AUTHOR: Muktar Balogun
EDITOR: Bamas Victoria
Claim 5
STATE: Kogi
CLAIM : An X (formerly Twitter) user @Uyscutti claimed the PDP governorship candidate in Kogi, Dino Melaye, did not mobilise party agents for the election.
FINDINGS: NFC contacted reporters on the field and they confirmed that PDP agents were on the ground at various polling units in Kogi state. Reporters from Premium Times, Qosim Suleiman, and the ICIR, Bankole Abe, said they met PDP agents in all polling units they visited.
VERDICT : INCORRECT
SOURCES : Premium Times & ICIR reporters
DATE : 12/11/2023
FACT_CHECK AUTHORS : Nurudeen Akewushola
EDITORS : KEMI BUSARI & OPEYEMI KEHINDE
Claim 4
STATE: Imo State
CLAIM: An X (formerly Twitter) User @mindset_post claimed that there were no voters in Okwuabala Ihioma in Orlu LGA as the number of accredited voters on the results sheet in the area was zero.
FINDINGS: A careful scrutiny of the result sheet shows that the number of accredited voters on the result sheet is six hundred and seventy-eight (678), while the number of spoiled ball ot papers is zero (0). The result from the said polling unit was uploaded on INEC IREV’s portal.
Voting didn’t take place in seven (7) polling units in Orlu LGA, according to a YIAGA Africa’s statement which clarified voting status across different locations in the state. The ICIR had also reported that the LP candidate in the state had called for the cancellation of results in some polling units due to crisis and absence of security personnel in parts of Orlu and Orsu.
VERDICT: INCORRECT
SOURCES: INEC iRev, YIAGA Africa, ICIR, NFC
DATE: 12/11/2023
FACT-CHECK AUTHOR(s): Fatimah Quadri
EDITOR: OPEYEMI KEHINDE
Claim 3
STATE: Imo state
CLAIM: An X user, Mo-Mo (@Morris_Monye), claimed that a Labour Party representative was “beaten up” by miscreants suspected to be APC party loyalists at the Imo collation centre in the presence of some Nigerian policemen and it was covered by national television stations present at the scene.
FINDINGS: NFC watched available videos on TVC and Channels TV and also spoke with Tunde Ososanya of the BBC who revealed that a Labour Party agent, Calistus Ihejiagwa, was beaten up by security officers, and not APC thugs. This was because Ihejiagwa fervently disrupted the collation proceeding when the Orlu LGA was about to be collated. Ihejiagwa had earlier filed a petition to the state’s returning officer, Prof Abayomi Fashina, FUOYE’s Vice Chancellor, who explained that his jurisdiction does not cover accepting petitions, and thus delaying the collation process for more than an hour.
VERDICT: MISLEADING.
SOURCES: TVC, Channels TV, BBC
DATE: 12/11/2023
FACT-CHECK AUTHOR: Phillip Anjorin
EDITOR: OPEYEMI KEHINDE
Claim 2
STATE: Imo State
CLAIM: A Facebook page, Kogi Global Media, claimed that Governor Hope Uzodinma has won the elections in all local governments of the state.
FINDINGS: According to Premium Times, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced Hope Uzodinma of the All Progressives Congress as winner of the Imo State governorship election. Uzodinma won the elections in the 27 local governments of the state with a total vote of 523,817. This was also reported by Channels TV and Arise News.
VERDICT: CORRECT
SOURCES: Premium Times, Arise News, Channels Television.
DATE: 12/11/2023
FACT-CHECK AUTHOR(s): Faruk Shuaibu
EDITOR: OPEYEMI KEHINDE
Claim 1
STATE: Kogi state
CLAIM: PDP candidate, Dino Melaye, posted a video alleging that fake policemen were caught in Ankpa local government area of Kogi state.
FINDINGS: Williams Ovye, Kogi Police spokesman, said the men (policemen) were arrested in Ankpa local government because they were not with their ID cards and were not supposed to be accompanying any official. He stated that the policemen were arrested for breaking that law, adding that they were not fake officers.
VERDICT: INCORRECT
SOURCES: William Ovye, Kogi Police spokesman.
DATE: 12/11/2023
FACT-CHECK AUTHOR(s): Lademi Aborisade
EDITORS: OPEYEMI KEHINDE
*This live-check was jointly researched and written by members of the Nigerian Fact-Checkers’ Coalition (NFC): Nurudeen Akewushola, Fatimah Quadri (FactCheckHub); Rosemary Ajayi (Digital Africa Research Lab); Daniel Adaji, Farida Salifu (NatureNews); Elizabeth Ogunbamowo, Lois Ugbede, Cole Praise, Temilade Onilede, Lateef Sanni, Sunday Awosoro, Philip Anjorin, Lade Aborisade, Maxine Danso (Dubawa); Catherine Adeniyi, Allwell Okpi, Fatimah Abubakar, Muktar Balogun, Semilore Adelola, Denzel Amobi, (Africa Check); Faruk Shuaibu (Daily Trust); Rejoice Ewodage, Hannah Ajakaiye (FactsMatterNG); Claire Mom (The Cable); Temiloluwa Erinle, Alefia Friday James, Muyiwa Adekojede (RoundCheck); Theophilus Adedokun; Shehu Olayinka, Blessing Otoibhi (ICIR).
It was edited and approved for publication by Kemi Busari, Simbiat Bakare (Dubawa), Motunrayo Joel, David Ajikobi (Africa Check), Ajibola Amzat (CCIJ), Opeyemi Kehinde (FactCheckHub) and Bamas Victoria (ICIR).
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