FACT CHECK: Enugu State PDP gov’ship candidate not assassinated
A short video clip has been trending across social media platforms showing bodies of two dead men. Those sharing the video claim that the winner of the just-concluded governorship primaries in Enugu, Mr Peter Ndubuisi Mbah, was the one assassinated. In the video, a man who was dressed in what looked like a police T-shirt […]
A short video clip has been trending across social media platforms showing bodies of two dead men. Those sharing the video claim that the winner of the just-concluded governorship primaries in Enugu, Mr Peter Ndubuisi Mbah, was the one assassinated.
In the video, a man who was dressed in what looked like a police T-shirt on jean trousers and presumed dead, was lying on the road while another man dressed in traditional attire was lying in a pool of blood on the ground beside a Toyota Land Cruiser SUV which was riddled with bullet holes.
Verdict: FALSE as the video in question has been found to be an old.
Verification: An analysis of the video using InVid, a video verification tool, showed that the video first appeared on July 7, 2021.
Further search on Google revealed that the video was shot at the scene where the Director General of the Scientific Equipment Development Institute (SEDI), Enugu, Professor Samuel Ndubuisi, was assassinated.
As reported by mainstream media, Ndubuisi and his police orderly were shot dead along the Centenary City Junction along the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway on July 7, 2021.
Reacting to the viral video, Mbah’s media office in a statement signed by Dan Nwome, described the report as false, wicked and evil.
The statement, titled ‘Fake news on the assassination of Dr Peter Ndubuisi Mbah’ reads; “We have been inundated with calls over fake news in circulation on some social media platforms on the purported assassination of the Enugu State PDP governorship flagbearer, Peter Ndubuisi Mbah.
“The story is false, wicked and evil.
“Our investigations indicate that the story was doctored from the video of the unfortunate gruesome assassination of one Dr Ndubuisi (real name: Professor Samuel Ndubuisi), the Director-General of the Science and Equipment Development Institute (SEDI), along the Enugu Port Harcourt expressway, two years ago.
“It is the mere coincidence of “Ndubuisi” in the two names that has been twisted by some devious and malevolent characters to spread unfounded panic and alarm amongst our genuinely concerned teeming supporters and well-wishers in Enugu State and beyond.
“We condemn this wicked, ill-conceived misinformation and urge the masterminds to play politics of moderation and sportsmanship, have the fear of God and develop respect for the sanctity of human life.”
Conclusion: Relying on available evidence, Daily Trust can confirm that the video in circulation is an old one and is in no way connected with the Enugu PDP governorship candidate, as such the claim is FALSE.