FACT CHECK: Does This Video Show A Crowd Attacking Nigerian Presidential Candidate Ahmed Tinubu’s Car?

Trevor Schakohl | Legal Reporter

A video shared on Facebook purportedly shows a crowd attacking Nigerian politician Ahmed Tinubu’s car.

Verdict: False

The footage shows a 2020 incident involving a different Nigerian politician, according to local news reports.

Fact Check:

The next Nigerian presidential election has been set for February 2023, according to the Premium Times. Nigeria’s All Progressives Congress Party announced Tinubu, who previously served as the governor of the state of Lagos in Nigeria, as its candidate after he won the party’s primary election last month.

A July 13 Facebook post claims his motorcade was recently attacked by a crowd. The footage shows a crowd striking and throwing objects at a convoy of vehicles. “Tinubu was given a run for his life at Osun State,” reads part of the post’s caption. The Osun state is located in southwestern Nigeria. (RELATED: ‘False COVID-19 Cases In Nigeria’ – Did CNN Air This News Chyron?)

In reality, the footage is more than a year old and shows an attack on a different Nigerian politician. The Nigerian news outlet Plus TV Africa posted the same footage on YouTube in October 2020 with the title, “#Endsars: Thugs Attack Gov.Oyetola’s Convoy (News | Nigeria).” The video’s description explains the motorcade belonged to Osun State Governor Adegboyega Oyetola. The Nigerian Tribune also reported on the attack at the time.

Tinubu has not tweeted or issued any statement about an attack on him or his team. (RELATED: ‘False COVID-19 Cases In Nigeria’ – Did CNN Air This News Chyron?)

This is not the first time misinformation related to Nigerian elections has spread online. Check Your Fact previously corrected a false rumor in May that alleged a Dutch man named Wieber Boer was campaigning to be governor of Nigeria’s Plateau State.

Trevor Schakohl

Legal Reporter
Follow Trevor on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/tschakohl

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