By
Emmanuel Sadiq
Claim: Several graphics shared on users’ WhatsApp statuses claimed that President Bola Tinubu plans to support exam malpractice in Nigerian universities.
FALSE
VERDICT: The information is false and the newly inaugurated President made no statement.
FULL TEXT
Months after his victory at the February 2023 general election, President Bola Tinubu was sworn into office on May 29 to succeed Muhammadu Buhari as Nigeria’s 5th democratically elected president since 1999.
But the country currently battles economic crises on different fronts due to Buhari’s activities while in office, leaving the nation in heavy debts that have never been recorded in the nation’s history.
To cushion the effect and steady the tides, one of the first announcements the newly-inaugurated president made was the abolition of the fuel subsidy, which plunged the nation into panic barely hours into the start of his administration.
This, perhaps, influenced many beliefs that he is going to support the Nigerian youths by allowing examination malpractice in Nigerian universities as seen in this picture.
A screenshot of the picture.
The images posted on WhatsApp statuses had some authenticity elements, as the graphics were designed like ‘breaking news’ from a broadcast organisation. Another example is shown below.
However, closer attention to Tinubu’s inauguration revealed that he made no such statement in his speech. To clear the air, I decided to verify the source of the graphics.
VERIFICATION
After critically assessing the pictures, we discovered one common trait: the watermark on both graphics. The watermark reads, “breakyourownnews.com,” which indicates a website where users can alter a news article for mischievous purposes.
Also, a transcript of Tinubu’s inaugural speech that i searched online revealed no such information. Neither did credible media organisations report that the president made such a statement.
Also, such information does not exist on his social media or other related stakeholders.
CONCLUSION
President Tinubu has not stated that he plans to support examination malpractice to encourage Nigerian students. Therefore, the claim is false.
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