An image showing Dele Farotimi, an human rights lawyer who is currently detained in prison over a defamation suit and Peter Obi, the Labour Party 2023 presidential candidate at the front of the Nigerian correctional service in Ado Ekiti has been circulating on X.
The image which was posted by X user, @MO_Shaibu_ showed Obi and a handcuffed Farotimi along with human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong and a security personnel. Also, there is a banner hanging at the top of the correctional facility’s front.
The caption on the claim made by the X user reads, “Putting this out here for historical reasons.” The post has garnered 153,200 views, 140 replies, about 1,000 reposts and quotes, over 2,700 reactions and 80 bookmarks as of the time this report was published.
Under the post, there were different reactions from X users, @Nithsmit commented saying, “They can never silent an idea that it’s time has come. The Nigerian judiciary is not for the common man”. Another X user, @Enyiomalrondi replied saying,“Dele changed clothes inside court bcos no b dis clothes he wore to court room today”.
Another X user, @thebeeperfumery reacted saying, “Nothing historical about it. Every other citizen gets arrested same way this dude did. That’s the hypocrisy in the democracy being practiced in Nigeria. Doesn’t have to be a known person before people like Obi come to their rescue. That said, Fatorimi gotta pay for his big mouth”.
Considering the controversy that has resulted in Farotimi’s imprisonment over the petition filed by Aare Afe Babalola, SAN, and Tony Elumelu, NV-A went ahead to verify the authenticity of the circulating image.
VERIFICATION
NV-A conducted a Reverse Image Search on the image, the result showed that the circulating image was doctored as the original image only showed Peter Obi and has been online since December 9, 2024. Also, the other people in the circulating visual were photoshopped into it, as the edges of their image looks feathered, a feature that is consistent with being imposed into a background.
The original image was posted on the evening of December 9 by an X user, @Drmopaul with four images including the one that was doctored. The caption on the post made by @Drmopaul reads:
“Today, Mr. @PeterObi traveled from Lagos to Ekiti State, dedicating the entire day to meaningful engagements. He visited Aare Afe Babalola at his office within the Afe Babalola University, where they had in-depth discussions on critical issues, including the situation of activists and lawyer @DeleFarotimi. Following this, Mr. @PeterObi proceeded to the prison facility where @DeleFarotimi is being held. In a private meeting, he expressed solidarity and engaged in a candid exchange aimed at addressing the prevailing challenges.”
Further, NV-A conducted keyword searches and found credible newspaper outlets like The Cable, The Punch, and Sahara Reporters used the picture of Obi standing alone in front of the correctional center without Farotimi, lawyer and security personnels. Also, Feedmuster posted the same news on Instagram with screenshots of Obi’s visit to Babalola.
It was reported that on Monday, December 9, Obi met with Babalola in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State. Also, the former presidential candidate visited Farotimi in the Ado-Ekiti correctional facility where the doctored image was taken.
CONCLUSION
The image of Peter Obi standing with handcuffed Dele Farotimi, including the lawyer and police personnel, is MISLEADING. Findings show that the original image only featured Obi and the other parties were photoshopped into the image.
