FACT-CHECK: Fabricated Newspaper Front Page Used to Portray Peter Obi Giving Testimony on Madness

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A scanned newspaper front page from PM News dated July 17, 2006, with a large red “FAKE” stamp across the page. The main headline reads “Low Madness,” with a subheadline mentioning Peter Obi, Anambra’s governor, giving testimony in church. — Fabricated NewsPaper

BY: Eniola Amadu

Claim:

A circulating P.M. Newspaper front page is circulating online claiming that the Presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) gave testimony on being cured of madness in a July 17, 2006 publication.

Verdict:

False. The image used in the testimony section of the news report was fabricated, and the name attributed to the individual was also fictitious.

Full Text:

Circulating image as posted on X by a user named @Oluyanimi has a newspaper front page claiming that the Presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC) gave testimony on being cured of madness in a July 17, 2006 publication.

The post comes amid the season of political campaigns ahead of the 2027 general elections to be held in January.

Similarly, another user on X, named @Uno_009 posted the same news paper front page, but this time around with the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu giving testimony.

A screenshot of the claims

Similar posts on X appeared here, here, here, and here.

As a result of the contrast in the purported claim, FactCheckAfrica subjected the claim to verification.

Verification:

FactCheckAfrica conducted a google reverse image search and discovered the same front page newspaper with an entirely different person — Femi Fani Kayode.

According to ARCHIVING, a digital database making Nigeria’s history accessible through digitising old newspapers revealed the original front page of the news publication.

Additionally, the PM news has on its website debunked the image circulating, stating that it was “manipulated”.

The newspaper publication has also through their X page debunked the image describing it as “digitally altered”.

Conclusion:

From findings made, FactCheckAfrica discovered that neither Peter Obi, nor the APC Presidential Candidate, Bola Tinubu made such a statement. Rather, the PM, newspaper front page for July 17, 2006 was fabricated by political actors for political banters and discredit.