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FACT CHECK: Did Tinubu recently collapse at a rally in Abuja?

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CLAIM: Two days ago, a facebook page, Igbo Time Magazine, posted that the Presidential candidate of the All Progressive congress, Bola Tinubu, collapsed at a rally in Abuja and was rushed to France for treatment.

VERDICT: False.

FULL TEXT:

The facebook page attached a picture to the post showing Tinubu in a slouch and being held up by some men around him.

The post has multiple shares and likes, and comments under it shows that people believed the information to be true. The post reads: “Breaking News: Tinubu rushed to comma in France after he collapsed in Abuja rally.”

READ ALSO:FACT CHECK: Did El-Rufai ask northerners not to vote for Tinubu?

“According to the information that was made available to us, Tinubu was warned by his France Doctor to stay out of the Presidential election since his health can’t permit him anymore”

VERIFICATION

A link to the purported video of Tinubu’s collapse was attached to the post but the link only led to the homepage of a blog, while the video was not there. However, a reverse image search of the attached picture led us to a video in which Tinubu stumbled after missing his steps at an event.

A reverse check of the video showed that it had been on the internet since 2021 even before the former Lagos State Governor became the presidential candidate of the ruling party. It was found that the video was taken at an Arewa event in Kaduna.

One of the oldest versions of the video has the following caption: “Moment APC National leader, Bola Tinubu, almost fell after missing his step at the 11th edition of the annual Arewa House lecture series in Kaduna today March 27, 2021.”

The video was also published by PUNCH with the headline: APC leader Tinubu missteps, stumbles at Arewa Lecture in Kaduna.

Meanwhile, the APC Presidential Campaign Council is yet to hold a campaign rally in Abuja. The last APC rally in Abuja held on September 26, 2022, and Tinubu was not there. It was organized by a coalition of support groups.

It should be noted that two days ago, Tinubu was in Delta State to campaign, and earlier in the week, he was in Ebonyi.

CONCLUSION

The claim in the post is false. Tinubu has not collapsed in any campaign rally, and the video in which the screenshot was taken shows that the man only tripped after missing his steps.

By: Oluwatobi Odeyinka

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