October 19, 2022
Nigeria: No, Ruling Party Campaign Spokesperson Did Not Give Nigerians the Middle Finger On National TV
IN SHORT: A screenshot shared on social media in Nigeria appears to show a prominent politician giving Nigerians "the finger". But Festus Keyamo wasn't deliberately being rude in… Read more »
October 12, 2022
Nigeria: No Evidence Nigeria's Main Opposition Party Is Paying Voters to Support Its 2023 Presidential Candidate
IN SHORT: Text messages circulating in Nigeria promise cash in return for voting for the main opposition party's presidential candidate in the 2023 elections. But, like previous… Read more »
October 07, 2022
South Africa: South Africa's Ruling Party Bigwig Kgalema Motlanthe Apologised for Slapping Provincial Party Structures On the Wrists? No, Viral Screenshot Fake
IN SHORT: A screenshot circulating online claims a top official from the African National Congress has apologised for comments made around the announcement of preferred candidates… Read more »
September 29, 2022
Nigeria: Factsheet - What You Need to Know About Nigeria's Pivotal 2023 General Elections
The country has tens of millions of voters. There's a possibility of a run-off. And victorious candidates will have a full in-tray. We bring you up to speed on one of Africa's most… Read more »
September 23, 2022
Kenya: Kenya's Former President Kenyatta Arriving in London for Queen Elizabeth's Funeral? No, Photo From 2020
IN SHORT: The photo actually shows Uhuru Kenyatta, Kenya's president from 2013 to 2022, arriving at a reception for heads of state during the 2020 UK-Africa Investment Summit in… Read more »
Kenya: Beware of Facebook Account Impersonating Kenyan President William Ruto and Making False Promises
IN SHORT: A Facebook page using William Ruto's name and photos is promising cash handouts in return for personal details. But the page is impersonating the Kenyan president and the… Read more »
September 21, 2022
Kenya: Yes, Quote Accurate, but Beware of Facebook Page Impersonating Kenya's Ramogi TV
IN SHORT: The 2022 electoral duel between Kenya's two largest parties went right down to the wire. A meeting between two of the presidential hopefuls was therefore newsworthy. But… Read more »
September 05, 2022
South Africa: Number of Police Is Declining, but Minister Gets Figures Wrong - And What They Represent
While briefing the press on 2022's first quarter crime statistics, police minister Bheki Cele exaggerated how many police officers had left the force in the past decade. What else… Read more »
September 01, 2022
Nigeria: Ahead of Major #NigeriaDecides2023 Elections, Country's Fact-Checkers Write Open Letter to Politicians
As the election campaigns officially start in Nigeria, a coalition of its fact-checkers is asking politicians to reject misinformation and promote evidence-based public debate. Read more »
August 30, 2022
Nigeria: No, CNN's Brianna Keilar Didn't Name Her Son After Nigerian Presidential Candidate Peter Obi
Brianna Keilar, an anchor at the US cable news network CNN, has named her son after Nigerian presidential candidate Peter Obi. That's the claim in a message doing the rounds on… Read more »
August 24, 2022
Kenya: Don't Be Scammed By Facebook Pages Using Kenyan Politician Chege's Name for Fake Loan Offers
Is Murang'a county woman representative Sabina Chege giving loans to Kenyans? Read more »
Kenya: No, Trade Union Boss and Odinga Supporter Atwoli Didn't Flee Kenya After Ruto's Presidency Win
A photo of Francis Atwoli, the secretary general of Kenya's Central Organization of Trade Unions, standing with a travelling bag at an airport is circulating on Facebook in August… Read more »
August 25, 2022
Nigeria: No Evidence Presidential Candidate Abubakar Said He Can't Campaign in South East Because of Rival Peter Obi
"Peter Obi is giving me worries, I can't even campaign in south East again because he has taken over." That's a quote by Nigerian presidential candidate for the People's Democratic… Read more »
August 22, 2022
Nigeria: No Evidence Author Wole Soyinka Advises Nigerians to Vote for Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso in 2023
A post published on Facebook claims Nigerian playwright, political activist and Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka has told Nigerians who to vote for in the 2023 general elections. Read more »
Kenya: No, Kenya's Electoral Commission Vice Chair Cherera Not On Facebook - Beware Imposter Page
Juliana Cherera, the vice chair of Kenya's Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), has recently been one of the country's most talked about people. Read more »
Nigeria: No, Nigerian Information Minister Mohammed Didn't Say Presidential Candidate Obi Was Behind #EndSARS Protests
Nigerian information minister Lai Mohammed has accused Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi of being "the brain behind" the #EndSARS protest movement, claim messages… Read more »
Kenya: Elections Agency Flagged Thousands of Votes Mistakenly Given to Odinga? No, Article Screenshot Fake
"IEBC Flags another 9,200 votes in Kisumu east constituency mistakenly added to Raila," reads the headline on what seems to be a screenshot of an article by the Kenyan news site… Read more »
Nigeria: No, Nigeria's Federal Inland Revenue Service Not Recruiting
A message posted on Facebook in Nigeria claims the country's Federal Inland Revenue Service, or Firs, is recruiting for 2022-23. Read more »
Nigeria: No, Governor of Nigeria's Rivers State Hasn't Set Up a 'Marriage Monitoring Team'
"Marrying in Rivers State without having up to N5million is illegal," begins a message doing the rounds on Facebook in Nigeria. N is the Nigerian naira. Read more »
Kenya: No, President-Elect Ruto Didn't Lock Mount Kenya MPs Out of Meeting - Star Newspaper Clipping Fake
Newly elected parliamentarians from the Mount Kenya region were "yesterday" locked out of a two-hour meeting at president-elect William Ruto's office in the wealthy suburb of Karen… Read more »
August 15, 2022
South Africa: No, South African MPs Are Generally Not Paid Less Than Their International Counterparts
While the country faced rising fuel prices and power cuts, South African members of parliament prepared to accept a salary increase. But are they really not paid more than their… Read more »
August 12, 2022
Kenya: No, US Embassy in Kenya Didn't Apologise for Kisumu Travel Restrictions Set Before Elections
A week before Kenya's general elections on 9 August 2022, the United States embassy in Nairobi issued a security alert for US citizens, warning of "pre-electoral violence during… Read more »
August 08, 2022
Kenya: Kenya's Kirinyaga County Candidate Has Withdrawn From Election? No, Graphic With Nation Branding Is Fake
A graphic posted on Facebook makes sensational claims about the race to be governor of Kenya's Kirinyaga county. Read more »
August 11, 2022
Kenya: Crowd in Kenya Singing 'Everything Is Possible Without Ruto'? No, Video Altered
A grainy video posted on Twitter on 3 August 2022 shows Kenyan deputy president William Ruto and another man sitting on the sunroof of a vehicle, surrounded by a crowd of people. Read more »
Kenya: Kenyans Living Abroad Voted in 12 Countries, but Not in Australia
"Diaspora Update!!!" reads a message circulating on Facebook since 9 August 2022. "Voting has ended at Kenya High Commission in Sydney, Australia. All 223 Kenyans had voted, (100%… Read more »