Online, there have been mixed reactions to this news. Some have hailed the move for removing barriers to employment, while others say it’s a smokescreen that shies away from addressing the root causes of unemployment.

Background

At the plenary on Wednesday, the Senate adopted a motion. It had the title “Age Requirement Pre-condition for Employment in Nigeria, Urgent Need for Intervention.” Abba Moro, a PDP senator from Benue South, sponsored this motion.

Moro argued that age limits were discriminatory and violated of the Nigerian Constitution. The section touches on the right to freedom from discrimination.

Moro also cited the International Labour Organisation (ILO), a UN agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice. He argued that economic discrimination fell short of the ILO’s standards.

Download the Citizen Election Report: Navigating Nigeria’s Political Journey

In Moro’s words, it was pathetic “that a graduate in Nigeria who could not get a job upon graduation and decided to back to school with the hope that a higher qualification, vis-a-vis a second or Masters Degree, could give him a better employment opportunity is thrown into a career paradox when upon completion of his Master’s Degree he comes out to find that he is now above the age of employment and therefore not employable by the sole reason of his age.”

He , “It is ironical that a graduate in this country can serve in the National Youth Service Corps programme at age 30 but cannot be gainfully employed after that on the fact that he/ she is now above 30 years, a situation that is a flagrant breach of his fundamental rights.”

Moro noted that this discrimination created a breeding ground for age fraud within the Nigerian Civil Service and beyond.

What else should you know?

The Senate is asking the Federal Ministry of Labour, Employment, and Productivity, and other related agencies to dissuade private employers from turning away people based on age. It also wants the ministry to develop policies that grant equal access and treatment in the workplace.

All of this remains tentative. But if it passes into law, older Nigerians of employable age might heave a sigh—even if temporary—of relief.

On Wait First, we sort claims into three categories. If it’s true, it gets a fresh banana rating from us. A false claim is burnt dodo, and a misleading claim is cold zobo.

So, is this claim valid? Did Adeleke nominate his daughter and uncle as commissioners?

[Ademola Adeleke / Daily Post]

Background

On July 7, the Osun State House of Assembly confirmed the list of 25 commissioner-nominees forwarded to the House for screening and confirmation by Governor Adeleke. 

Among the names that made the list were Adenike Adeleke and Moruf Adeleke. The two share the same surname as the governor. Following the announcement, there were reactions on social media criticising the governor for presumably appointing his relatives into government. Some online news platforms also ran with this news.

Our partners, FactCheckElections, noted that “social media users reacting to the claim viewed the purported appointment as a ‘double standard/nepotism’ and inappropriate in government.”

Verification

FactCheckElections looked into the claim. Here’s :

“T��� spokesperson to the state governor, Olawale Rasheed, has debunked the viral claim that his principal nominated his daughter and uncle for commissioner. 

Contrary to the narratives making the rounds that two of the commissioner-nominees are Adeleke’s daughter and uncle, Rasheed told the media that the nominees are not the governor’s family. 

They are ‘bonafide indigenes of Osogbo Land’, he said. 

He added: Prof Adeleke was born in Ilesa and hails from Osogbo, the state capital. Mrs Adeleke is the daughter of Chief Omidiran of Osogbo Land and wife of the late Executive Governor of Osun State, Senator Isiaka Adeleke.”

FactCheckElections reports that the governor is from the Adeleke family of Ede in Osun State.

Verdict

The claim that Governor Ademola Adeleke nominated his relatives to commissioner positions is misleading and, therefore, cold zobo.

The confusion stems from the fact that they share the same surname. However, it has now been confirmed that they are not from the same bloodline as the governor. 

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On Wait First, we sort claims into three categories. If it’s true, it gets a fresh banana rating from us. A false claim is burnt dodo, and a misleading claim is cold zobo.

So is this video true, or is it doctored?

Background

Nnamdi Kanu is the leader of the separatist group, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB). He has, however, been in the custody of the Department of State Services since his . He was initially captured in October 2015 but escaped. His current incarceration is happening despite a court order mandating his release. 

According to fact-checkers at the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD-West Africa), the IPOB first issued a sit-at-home order in August 2021. The order grinds all economic activity to a halt in the southeastern part of Nigeria. According to the IPOB, it will be held every Monday until Nnamdi Kanu is released. The order was revised to only occur on days when Kanu was due in court.

, “On June 14 2023, Finland-based Simon Ekpa, leader of Autopilot (a faction of IPOB), issued a statement which declared a five-day sit-at-home order in the southeastern part of Nigeria. Ekpa stated that the order would hold from 3 to 5 July and continue from 7 to 10 July.” 

ALSO, READ: Who’s This Simon Ekpa Guy Running IPOB?

Verification

The CDD fact-checked the video. Here’s what they found:

“T��� CDD War Room can confirm that the video emanated from Abakaliki, Ebonyi state. The video was not doctored, and investigations proved that it first surfaced online on July 4, 2023.

Credible media agencies like and have reported that the incident did occur at the Ishieke market in Ebonyi state. 

However, it’s not certain whether the gunmen are members of IPOB or otherwise. 

IPOB is yet to claim responsibility or deny the activities of the gunmen.”

Verdict

The claim that gunmen attacked and shot at a marketplace in Abakaliki, Ebonyi state, on July 4, 2023, is true and, therefore, fresh banana. However, IPOB is yet to claim responsibility for it.

Download the Citizen Election Report: Navigating Nigeria’s Political Journey

For instance, there’s a YouTube channel dedicated to telling jokes using AI-generated voices and the visuals of former US presidents. For the uninitiated, it looks genuine. See , for example. 

In another one, a photo of the Pope in a white hoodie took Twitter by storm. It was later found to be AI-generated.

While it may seem harmless fun to some, fake images can have grave consequences. In May, a falsified photo of an explosion near the US Pentagon in what some consider the first instance of an AI-generated image moving the market.

In Nigeria, leading up to the elections, fake images of presidential candidates and their allies made the rounds. Many of these made their way to WhatsApp groups and stoked ethnic sentiments that influenced how people voted.

For this week’s episode of Wait First, we look at ways to identify fake photos and how to protect yourself from sharing fake news.

How to spot fake photos online

Fact-checkers, Dubawa identifying five ways to spot fake images. In summary:

1. Check the source. Look for the source of the photo. If it’s from a reputable organisation or a known photographer, it’s more likely to be authentic.
2. Look for inconsistencies. Check for photo inconsistencies, such as mismatched shadows, unnatural lighting, or distorted proportions. 
3. Check the metadata. Most digital photos contain metadata that includes information such as the date, time, and location of the photo. Check this information to see if it matches the context of the photo.
4. Use Reverse Image Search. Use a reverse image search engine like Google Images, Tineye, or Yandex to see if the photo has been used elsewhere on the internet. If it has been used in multiple contexts, it may be fake.
5. Consult experts. Consult with forensic analysts, photojournalists, or digital forensic experts if you’re still unsure about the image’s authenticity.

What else should you know?

Besides the above points, Deutsche Welle (DW), the news agency, has also to help shield you from falling victim to fake images.

1. Zoom in and look carefully.
2. Watch out for typical AI errors. AI-generated images tend to have one too many fingers. In the example of the Pope above, did you notice that his left fingers were unusually long and that there were only four of them? Also, look out for too many teeth or weird glass frames. The is an AI tool that generates photos of people who don’t exist.
3. Check for unusual smoothing. If the hair or skin looks exceptionally flawless, there’s a good chance it’s fake.
4. Examine the background. Sometimes, the backgrounds of AI images tend to be blurred or have distorted objects.
5. If you encounter an image on Twitter whose authenticity you’re unsure of, you can tag the handle . It does reverse image searches and can check if an image is real or AI-generated.

[ image of Will Smith. Note the blurry background]

Despite these tips, technology is constantly advancing, and AI is adapting to overcome its flaws. Ultimately, the best bet is to remain sceptical and apply common sense. Don’t be too eager to share a photo if it’s not verified. When in doubt, leave it out.

Download the Citizen Election Report: Navigating Nigeria’s Political Journey

[Nasir El-Rufai / Vanguard]

The comments have and offline, with the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) asking Nigerians .

El-Rufai was addressing Muslim clerics in Kaduna at an event where he was handing over to Sani. The speech, which was in Hausa, has been transcribed by . Here’s the transcript below: 

Transcript

“Why did I pick Dr Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe as my deputy in 2019? First, I calculated that most of those, not Muslims, don’t vote for our party. Most of them. So, why should I give them the deputy (governor) position? I did my calculation, and I knew we could win the election without giving them (the position of deputy governor). That’s first. That’s a purely political issue. It’s politics. You want to win an election and seek people to vote for you. We have observed that since we started practising democracy, we know places we used to win elections and those places we don’t. We’ve done that calculation politically. That’s the political point of it.

Secondly, what we wanted to prove to people, and thank God in the last four years, we’ve vindicated ourselves and proved that a government that has a Muslim as governor, a Muslim as deputy governor, a Muslim as SSG (secretary of state government), a Muslim as chief of staff, a Muslim as finance commissioner, we’ll not cheat Christians in Kaduna State. And everywhere we go, we tell them, Yes, that’s it; the top government hierarchy in Kaduna State are Muslims, but can any Christian in Kaduna prove that we’ve oppressed them? Is there any district that we didn’t renovate schools? Is there any district we didn’t construct a hospital? Anywhere that we didn’t build roads? Is there anywhere we didn’t help farmers, whether they voted for us? We’ve given everyone their entitlements.

Of course, Kubau (Local Government Area) voted for us the most (in Northern Kaduna), so I’ll add something to Kubau because they voted for us. What I’ll give Jaba, I’ll increase it for Kubau because Jaba didn’t vote for us. But we’ve given them their entitlements.

You, Imams and Ulamas, taught us that leadership in Islam is all about justice. The Prophet (peace be upon him) and his companions lived with those that were not Muslims, including Jews, Christians and even pagans, but they addressed him as El-Amin (trusted one) because he treated them with fairness. Caliphs like Abubakar, Umar, Usman, and Ali did justice to those who were not Muslims. Nobody can say he was oppressed for not being a Muslim. But you’ll prefer the ones who support you. But don’t oppress any.

I always tell them. During this campaign season, they said “this and that,” and I replied ‘Yes, we’re looking for those who can deliver. We’re not looking at your religion. Of course, we consider the religious aspect, but I can’t say that. But what I am saying is, who is being oppressed? Open up and tell us if this government has treated you unjustly. No answer. Well, no one can say he is used to being engaged in criminal activities, used to being idle, but we stopped that. Or you were used to blocking the road, and we said if you do it again, this will be the consequences, and you know we can do it.

That’s what we’ve done for four years, myself and my team. And that’s what we still did, and Senator Uba Sani and Dr Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe still won their election (as governor and deputy) even with the religious gang up against us. You, the Imams and Ulamas here, were the ones who did the work, not even the politicians, because the politicians even betrayed us. And he, Senator Uba Sani, knows this. We know it. We’re aware of those who collected money on election day but switched off their phones, slept off and didn’t even bother to come out for the election. But we know the First Aid group members that served as polling agents. 

Those we paid to protect the votes didn’t do so, but the first aid group members did. And we’re grateful for that, and may God reward you and how you dedicated yourself and supported us. In the name of God, I beg you to support Senator Uba Sani when he finishes his first four years. Re-elect him into office. Then we can continue to prove to people that Islamic leadership doesn’t discriminate but doesn’t condone deliberate mocking. It doesn’t condone indignity. That’s the only thing we want to prove, and we’ve started, but this is not the end; we’ll have to do it for at least twenty years, which will make everyone understand.

After Uba finishes his tenure and gets re-elected, that’ll be sixteen, right? (El Rufai served two terms of eight years as governor). Then we’ll have another tenure which will make it 24 years. That is when everyone will understand and say, ‘Okay, we understand, we know our status, and we know the Muslims will not oppress us.’ That’s it. And you’ll see that there will be peace. I swear to God, this has been our plan from the first day we started APC in the state, and God has been helping us with your prayers and commitment. We’re on the right path. May God bless you all.”

On Wait First, we divide claims into three categories. A valid claim is a fresh banana. A false claim is a burnt dodo. And a misleading claim is cold zobo.

So, how valid is this claim?

Background

According to the by Daily Trust, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) devalued the naira from ₦461.6 to ₦6‎31 to the dollar. It then sold at the new rate in the “Importers and Exporters (I&E)” window on May 31. 

Nigeria currently runs a multiple exchange rate system. The CBN provides its rates, and the parallel market, commonly known as the black market, provides another. The gulf between the two creates arbitrage. This is a situation where people trade in currencies by taking advantage of differing prices for the same currency. 

As of May 31, the was ₦461.26 to the dollar. 

The for the same day was ₦750 to the dollar.

Verification

Not long after the news report was released, the CBN released a screenshot describing it as “fake news”.

The CBN then followed up with signed by its acting director of corporate communications, Isa AbdulMumin. It read:

“T��� attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been drawn to a news report by Daily Trust Newspaper of June 1, 2023, titled ‘CBN Devalues Naira To 630/$1’.

We wish to state categorically that this news report, which in the imagination of the newspaper is exclusive, is replete with outright FALSEHOODS and destabilising innuendos, reflecting potentially willful ignorance of the said medium as to the workings of the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market.

For the avoidance of doubt, the exchange rate at the Investors’ and Exporters’ (I&E) window traded this morning (June 1, 2023) at ₦465/$ and has been stable around this rate for a while.

The public is hereby advised to ignore this news report by Daily Trust in its entirety, as it is speculative and calculated at causing panic in the market.

Media practitioners are advised to verify their facts from the Central Bank of Nigeria before publishing in order not to misinform the public.”

Verdict

The CBN has come out to state that the claim by Daily Trust is emphatically false. Therefore this news is nothing but burnt dodo.

Hi friend! For the past few months, we’ve helped you say on top of Nigerian politics, policies and governance or have we? In less than 2 mins, tell us what you think about ��è��Ƶ Citizen , and we owe you an interesting story next week.

On Wait First, we divide claims into three categories. A valid claim is a fresh banana. A false claim is burnt dodo. And a misleading claim is cold zobo.

So, how valid is this claim?

[Alex Otti / Punch]

Background

The period immediately after elections is often very litigious. Various courts and tribunals nationwide are neck-deep in suits and countersuits. This is because individuals and parties often contest election outcomes. For example, the Osun State governorship election was disputed all the way to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court eventually in favour of Ademola Adeleke.

Similarly, one Ibrahim Haruna Ibrahim filed a suit against the Labour Party (LP) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at the Federal High Court in Kano. This suit’s purpose was to seek to nullify the candidacy of all LP candidates in Kano and Abia States and for the court to revoke the certificates of return issued to all LP candidates declared winners in Kano and the 35 states of the Federation, including the FCT.

According to , the judge cited the failure of the Labour Party to submit its membership registers to INEC ahead of the party’s primaries as the reason. A part of the judgement which the newspaper claimed to see on Friday, May 19, read:

“That the failure of the 1st defendant to submit its register of members in Kano State and Abia State is in crass breach of the provisions of section 77(3) of the Electoral Act, 2022, and the purported Primary Elections of the 1st defendant is invalid, null and void and of no effect.”

Verification

Our partners, Fact-Check Elections, . Here’s what they found:

“F�����ٰ��𳦰췡���𳦳پ��DzԲ� contacted a lawyer (Barrister Desmond Orisewezie) on the true interpretation of the judgment. When asked about the court’s true position and whether it has sacked the Abia state governor-elect, the lawyer said, ‘No, it only concerns Kano but has legal implications for Otti and Obi.’

A report credited to states the Federal High Court sitting in Kano has denied nullifying the candidature of the Abia State governor-elect, Dr Alex Otti. “Candidates who participated in the 2023 general election in Abia were not parties before his court. This court lacks jurisdiction to make an order to issue a certificate of return,” Justice Muhammad Nasir-Yunusa was reported to have said.

Another report by says the Kano Judge faults the media report of nullifying Abia state governor-elect candidature. “Media reports that it nullified the candidature of the Abia State governor-elect, Dr Alex Otti, who contested the election on the platform of the Labour Party, LP, are misleading,” said the court judge. However, he added that the court annulled the election of all the Kano LP candidates that contested the 2023 general election. Nasir-Yunusa said, “T��� court declared only the primary election of the Labour Party in Kano State null and void.”

Verdict

Based on the evidence above, reports claiming that a court sacked Abia state governor-elect Alex Otti is misleading. It’s cold and undiluted zobo.

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The user followed up his claim with a photo of Obi in conversation with some lawyers in court. As of the time of writing, has been viewed over 412k times. 

A self-acclaimed leader of the IPOB, Simon Ekpa, also tweeted on May 9, 2023, that Mike Ozekhome (SAN), who is Nnamdi Kanu’s counsel and appears in the photo above, is part of Obi’s legal team.

On Wait First, we divide claims into three categories. A valid claim is a fresh banana. A false claim is burnt dodo. And a misleading claim is cold zobo.

So, how valid is this claim?

ALSO READ: Who’s This Simon Ekpa Guy Running IPOB?

Verification

Fact-checkers at the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD-West Africa) . Here’s what they found:

In January 2022, following his apprehension by the Nigerian government, Nnamdi Kanu appointed Mike Ozekhome as his lead counsel in his case against the FG. Ifeanyi Ejiofor, one of Kanu’s lawyers, .

Is Mike Ozekhome representing Peter Obi at the Election Tribunal? 

“T��� prepared by Obi’s legal team includes a list of the legal practitioners representing the petitioner. Mike Ozekhome’s name does not appear on the list.

“We, however, found Ozekhome to be among the legal team of Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which was The team included his name in the that was submitted.

“Further investigation revealed that Ozekhome and Atiku have had a clientele relationship since 2017. He is also currently representing the latter in the filed by Festus Keyamo. 

“Another senior lawyer in the attached image to the tweet is We found that the , has never represented Nnamdi Kanu or the IPOB secessionist group.”

Verdict

The claim that lawyers representing Peter Obi at the presidential election tribunal also represent Nnamdi Kanu is burnt dodo. It’s false.

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On Wait First, we divide claims into three categories. A valid claim is a fresh banana. A false claim is a burnt dodo. And a misleading claim is a cold zobo.

So, is this claim valid?

ALSO READ — Explainer: All the Petitions Filed Against BAT’s Presidency

Background

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT) of the All Progressive Congress (APC) winner of the presidential election held on February 25, 2023. INEC declared BAT the winner with 8,794,726 votes. However, several political parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Labour Party (LP), Action Alliance (AA), Allied Peoples Movement (APM), and Action Peoples Party (APP), filed petitions challenging the election results.

The pre-hearing of the presidential tribunal, which started on May 8, 2023, will address these petitions. Peter Obi filed a joint petition with his party raising five “prayers” against the declared winner, BAT, his running mate, the APC, and INEC.

One of the petitions Obi and his party filed focuses on BAT’s eligibility in the concluded presidential election. Obi alleges that BAT was linked to drug trafficking by a US court. This then led to his forfeiture of $460,000 to the American government. He argues that, as a result, BAT is not qualified to contest the Nigerian presidency. 

This fact check aims to see if the claim that a court has dismissed the drug petition is valid.

Verification

We looked into this claim with support from our partners, FactCheck Elections. Here’s :

“F�����ٰ��𳦰췡���𳦳پ��DzԲ� that the presidential elections tribunal commenced its pre-hearing on May 8, 2023, and made a sitting on the petition filed by Peter Obi and the Labour Party challenging the outcome of the February 25 presidential election.  

reported that the Justice Tsamani-led panel announced it would commence its pre-hearing session with three petitions. They are the petitions by Action Alliance (AA) marked: CA/PEPC/01/2023; Action Peoples Party (APP) marked: CA/PEPC/02/2023 and Peter Obi & Labour Party (LP) marked: CA/PEPC/03/2023.

The Guardian reported the Tribunal on Monday dismissed the petition by the AA challenging the declaration of Tinubu as the winner of the presidential election after the AA withdrew its petition at the Presidential Election Petition Court sitting in Abuja, prompting the dismissal. According to , AA gave no reason for the withdrawal. 

However, , in its timed live update at the inaugural sitting, did not report the dismissal of any of Peter Obi’s petitions. The court announced an adjournment of the case till May 10, 2023. This was reported at around 1:00 p.m. on May 8, 2023. 

No reputable news or media platform reported the news of the dismissal of any of Peter Obi’s petitions.”

The case has been again to May 17, 2023, “to enable parties to harmonise their processes.”

Verdict

The claim that Peter Obi’s drug petition against BAT has been dismissed is false and, therefore, burnt dodo. Hearings on the matter will resume on May 17, 2023.

On Wait First, we divide claims into three categories. A valid claim is fresh banana. A false claim is burnt dodo. And a misleading claim is cold zobo.

So, how valid is this claim?

Verification

We looked into news reports to see if any Bills banning protests had recently been passed. There were none. The , an NGO that promotes civic participation by, among other ways, tracking Bills being read at the National Assembly, had no report on this Bill. We also looked at the Twitter handle of the . It has no record of this Bill. 

We were, however, able to identify a news report by from July 2021. It mentioned a Bill that claimed to propose a five-year jail term for unlawful protesters. This Bill, which generated controversy, was sponsored by Emeka Chinedu, representing Ahiazu Mbaise and Ehinihitte Mbaise Federal Constituency of Imo state. In an interview with , Chinedu clarified that his sponsored Bill only condemned mob action, not protesters.

His words

“T��� caption of the Bill that went viral was never my intent or opinion. Neither was it an embodiment of the Bill I sponsored that passed the first reading on the floor of the National Assembly on Tuesday, July 6, 2021. Hence, a clear case of misunderstanding, misconception and misrepresentation of the facts.

“As a representative of the people, whose political idealogy is rooted in democratic tenets, I can never be a party to a system that seeks to stifle or cripple dissenting voices whose right to freedom of assembly, expression and protest is guaranteed by the combined effort of section 39 and 40 of 1999 Constitution as amended, as well as Article 11 of the African Charter on Human and People’s Right to assemble freely.

“While I urge Nigerians to imbibe the culture of reading beyond newspaper captions to comprehend the body of a message, it is imperative to put the record straight to douse tension and allay the concerns of my teeming adherents.

“T��� Criminal Code Amendment Bill, 2021, did not discuss criminalising protests or protesters in Nigeria. Rather, it is a Bill that proactively seeks to preserve life and protect the killing of the innocent through mob action, known as ‘jungle justice’ in our local parlance.”

Verdict

The tweet about a Bill to criminalise protests is based on events that happened in 2021 that have been debunked. The poster presented it as new information that no available evidence can support. The claim is, therefore, misleading and is cold zobo.

Did Peter Obi Pay a Visit to BAT, Gbaja, Sanwo and Dangote?

On April 28, 2023, a Twitter user @donortez that appeared to show the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, in company with the president-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu (BAT), businessman Aliko Dangote, Speaker of the HOR, Femi Gbajabiamila and Lagos state governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu. 

The poster claimed that the meeting took place after Jumat, which refers to the prayers by Muslims on Friday. This tweet which was still up at the time of writing, has been viewed over 95,000 times.

So how valid is this claim?

Verification 

Our partners at FactCheck Elections , and here’s what they found:

“T��� original photograph featured Aliko Dangote and BAT, but not Peter Obi. The photograph was taken during a previous meeting between the two men, which has been misrepresented by the person who manipulated the image.

“No credible evidence supports the claim that Peter Obi visited BAT recently. No major news outlet or credible source has reported such a meeting, and no photographic or video evidence has been produced to support the claim.

“Upon closer examination, it is clear that the photograph has been manipulated. The image of Peter Obi has been superimposed onto the photograph, creating the false impression that he was present at the meeting. This manipulation is common on social media, where users frequently create and share false or misleading images to gain attention or spread false information.”

Verdict

No evidence exists of any such meeting taking place between Obi and BAT. The photo has been dismissed as a doctored one. Therefore this is burnt dodo and should be treated as false.