By Pascal Ibe

Igbo History, a Facebook page on Saturday posted that Godswill Akpabio, the Senate president of Nigeria said that 10th Senate will protect President Bola Tinubu, even it means sacrificing lives of Nigerians.

According to the post by Ìgbo History on Facebook, “We can do anything to protect the lives of President Tinubu and his vice, even if it means sacrificing the lives of all Nigerians,” said Akpabio.

Godswill Akpabio continued, “We know Nigerians are hungry, but that will not stop us from approving a private jet for Mr. President. His life is more important now than that of ordinary citizens. We have to do that as fast as possible.”

The post which gained over 700 reactions on Facebook as at Sunday morning, was greeted with wide condemnation by angry Nigerians.

Checks showed that many X accounts posted this claim. thefactwatch sees it as very important to fact check this.

Verification

First, when we search to see if any reputable news organization in Nigeria reported this, we discovered that this claim was not reported by any media organization in Nigeria.

But three days ago, Senator Godswill Akpabio appeared in the news when he said that reintroduced national anthem could have prevented banditry.

In a video by Channels TV, Senator Akpabio said the new National Anthem Will Build Patriotism, Resolve Insecurity.

Faulty Presidential Jet

Recall that President Bola Tinubu and his entourage, on Tuesday, departed Lagos for Pretoria to attend the inauguration of the South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa, aboard two private aircraft.

The development came barely 24 hours after the Presidency replied to the objection by the Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, to a demand for new aircraft for the presidential fleets.

The House of Representatives Committee on National Security and Intelligence had recently called on the Federal Government to buy new aircraft for Tinubu and Vice-President Kashim Shettima.

The committee’s recommendation was contained in a report released after it investigated the status of the aircraft in the presidential air fleet.

Obi, on his X handle on Monday, however, described the move as unfortunate, saying it was coming at a time Nigerians were grappling with economic hardship occasioned by the Federal Government’s policies.

But the Presidency, in a swift reaction, described Obi’s comment as insensitive, wondering if he would rather have the life of the President jeopardised by flying faulty aircraft.

Onanuga had queried the former Anambra governor’s intention on why the number one citizen should not have access to a new plane for his safety.

“Does Peter Obi want the President dead? Is that his wish? Does he want him to continue moving around in a rickety plane and die like the VP of Malawi and Iran President? Let him tell us. This is a basic thing any sane government will do. You can’t toy with your President’s welfare.

“Why will any right-thinking person still want the President to move around in it? In this way, it is the National Assembly that officially recommended that new ones should be bought. Sometimes, Peter Obi opened his mouth to make unnecessary statements,” he stated.

Verdict

The claim that Senator Akpabio said the Senate will do protect President Bola Tinubu, even it means sacrificing lives of Nigerians is FALSE.

This cannot be found anywhere in the media.

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