During the week, different Twitter users claimed that the Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi had acknowledged that he “unknowingly” broke a law.
The different tweets which have garnered over 800,000 engagements come against the backdrop of Obi’s alleged detention by the UK Immigration Service at London’s Heathrow Airport in early April.
VERDICT: Misleading
BACKGROUND:
Obi, via his verified Twitter page, had on Tuesday, April 18, 2023, released a statement urging his followers to remain calm and steadfast in the journey to reclaiming their mandate for a new Nigeria and how he would never be deterred by the obstacles along the way to victory.
Speaking on his alleged detention, part of the statement read; “Sometimes as humans, we make mistakes but, I will never knowingly break any law. I am therefore not afraid of the lies and propaganda against my person. They are part of the journey to a New Nigeria.”
However, this part of his tweet has been misquoted by some Twitter users aimed at misleading others.
One user tweeted, “Peter Obi has finally accepted that he was actually arrested in the UK. He said he was arrested because he ‘UNKNOWINGLY’ broke the law.”
A party chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Femi Fani-Kayode, also tweeted that, “Peter’s Obi’s claim that he never ‘knowingly broke the law speaks volumes and suggests that he broke it ‘unknowingly’.”
CDD Election War Room took a critical look into the different versions of Obi’s statement, and here is what we understand.
VERIFICATION:
CDD Election War Room read the full statement released by Peter Obi on his verified Twitter page and found that there was no part of the statement where he accepted that he was actually arrested in the UK because he “unknowingly” broke the law.
What Peter Obi said in his tweet is, “…I will never knowingly break any law…” The different quotes on Twitter seem to be attempting to twist Obi’s words to say he admitted to committing a crime in the UK. Obi did not at any point say he broke the law. It is therefore misleading to ascribe the statement to his alleged detention in the UK.
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