Ignore fake viral graphic claiming Djibouti's Mahmoud Youssouf rejected billions of Kenyan shillings to drop bid for top African Union job
A graphic is getting social media attention in Kenya. It claims that Djibouti's candidate for the African Union Commission (AUC) chairperson seat, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, was offered money to drop his candidacy in favour of Kenya's former prime minister Raila Odinga .
Text on the graphic reads: "Djibouti's Mahamoud Ali Youssouf Rejects Shs. 6 Billion Offer from Kenyan Government to Step Down for Raila Odinga in AUC Race."
It shows an image of Youssouf, who serves as the foreign affairs minister of Djibouti, and the logo of the Kenyan news site Nation Africa, implying that they published it.
The African Union Commission is the secretariat of the African Union and manages the day-to-day activities of the 55-country bloc. It is headquartered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Odinga is among three candidates seeking to replace Moussa Faki Mahamat from Chad when his second and final term ends. The other candidate is Richard Randriamandrato, the former foreign affairs minister of Madagascar.
The chairperson is elected for a four-year term, renewable once. The next election for the position is set to take place in February 2025.
Africa Check also found a screenshot of a tweet allegedly made by Youssouf , apparently confessing that the offer was made.
The graphic and the screenshot has been posted here and here. (Note: See more instances listed at the end of this report.)
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But are they legit? We checked.
Fake graphic
Africa Check didn't find any instance of reputable media outlets reporting the claim in the graphic, despite it being a sensitive diplomatic matter.
Despite the graphic featuring Nation Africa logo, the text in the graphic did not conform to Nation Africa's usual house style. For instance, the first two words are usually written in capital letters in a genuine graphic but this is not the case on the circulating graphic.
The font used in writing the date on the suspicious graphic also doesn't match the one on legit graphics.
Nation Africa usually posts its graphics on its verified social media accounts, including Facebook and X. Africa Check scoured the accounts for the graphic in question but came up empty.
On 22 January 2025, the news site posted a blurred version of the suspicious graphic, with the word "fake" printed on it.
"FAKE NEWS ALERT! Please be advised that this card doing rounds on social media is fake," Nation Africa wrote.
We also checked the X account @MahamoudAliYo that appeared to have tweeted Youssouf's "confession". It is a parody account created in September 2024. There is no such statement on his real account @ymahmoudali, created in November 2010.
The graphic and the screenshot are fake and should be ignored.
The graphic was also posted here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.
