FACT CHECK!!! Lagos Governor Sanwo Olu Invites Igbo Community To Seek Alliances?—-After a thorough investigation, TGM report that there is no proof that the governor of Lagos state is hosting exclusive dinners for “Igbo captains of industry” to win votes ahead of the governor elections on March 11 in Nigeria, where politicians are still vying for votes.
On Facebook and WhatsApp in Nigeria, there appears to be a request for “a tea” and “one-on-one engagement” from Babajide Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos state. To “Igbo captains of industry,” it is addressed.
One of the Facebook posts reads: “With the growing fear he could lose his Governorship seat to LP’s GRV, Gov. Sanwo-Olu is set to meet with Igbo captains of Industry in Lagos”.
Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, or GRV, is the Labour Party candidate for governor of Lagos in the 11 March 2023 elections.
In Nigeria’s 25 February presidential elections, Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) lost Lagos state, his historical stronghold, to Peter Obi, the Labour Party candidate.
Obi received 575,735 votes to defeat his rival Tinubu, who had 573,001 votes. Tinubu was declared the winner of the presidential election on 1 March.
The post suggests Sanwo-Olu, who is from the same party as Tinubu, could lose to the candidate of the Labour Party on 11 March. The dinner would be to curry favour with Igbo people in the state.
But is the invite legit?
On February 27, 2023, Jubril Gawat, Sanwo-senior Olu’s special assistant, refuted the assertion in a tweet. He tweeted “FAKE NEWS” and uploaded a copy of the invitation with the phrase “Fake News” in red.
FAKE NEWS !!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/Aq8sQpr1To
— Jubril A. Gawat (@Mr_JAGs) February 27, 2023
Also, The Genius Media Nigeria looked through the governor’s verified Twitter account but couldn’t locate any proof of the invitation or a similar event.
Further searches on the Twitter account and website of the Lagos State Government turned up nothing.
