An image showing Olumide Oworu, the Labour Party’s candidate for Lagos State House of Assembly in Surulere Constituency 1, with blood on his face and shirt, has surfaced online with a claim that it shows the moment after he was reportedly attacked by hoodlums in a part of the state.
Olumide and his supporters were reportedly attacked by thugs on Thursday, March 16, 2023, Channels TV reported.
Following the attack, a photo of Oworu covered by blood began to circulate on social media with a claim that thugs hired by the All Progressives Congress (APC) bruised him during the attack.
A Twitter user, @omolerinjare, tweeted the photo with a caption that read:
“Hope the whole world have seen what Desmond Elliot did to Olumide. This won’t stop his retirement. It’s inevitable.”
Another Twitter user, @ayemojuba tweeted the photo with another caption thus: “Olumide Oworu was attacked by APC thugs.”
CLAIM
Photo shows Olumide Oworu after he was attacked by thugs in Lagos.
THE FINDINGS
A quick check by The FactCheckHub shows that the image has been online more than five months ago.
Olumide is a Nigerian actor who has featured on several Nollywood movies and won a number of awards for his roles in various movies.
Findings show that the picture in circulation had earlier been uploaded on his Instagram handle with a caption indicating that photo was taken during a movie production.
He shared the photo on October 3, 2022 with a caption that reads: Alagbado John Wick. #OntheEdge on his Instagram page.
Similarly, the claim that he was attacked by APC thugs could not be independently verified by The FactCheckHub as of the time of filing this report.
THE VERDICT
The claim that the image shows Olumide Oworu after he was attacked by thugs in Lagos is MISLEADING; findings show that the photo is not connected with Thursday’s incident in Lagos.
Nurudeen Akewushola is an investigative reporter and fact-checker with The ICIR. He believes courageous in-depth investigative reporting is the key to social justice, accountability and good governance in society. You can reach him via nyahaya@icirnigeria.org and @NurudeenAkewus1 on Twitter.