The Nigerian presidency has denied reports circulating on social media claiming that human rights activist Aisha Yesufu and 35 other individuals were awarded national honours by President Bola Tinubu.
A Facebook page, Victor Micheal made the claim a few days ago.
The claim reads, “BREAKING: President Tinubu confers National Honours on Aisha Yesufu, Innoson CEO, Innocent Chukwuma, Pastor Tunde Bakare, NSA Nuhu Ribadu and other Nigerians in additional list. Expanded list:
“CON (Commander of the Order of the Niger):
Aisha Yesufu
Innocent Chukwuma
Uche Chukwumerije
Olisa Agbakoba
Nuhu Ribadu
Hafsat Abiola-Costello
Tunde Bakare
“MFR (Member of the Order of the Federal Republic):
Ibijoke Faborode
Seun Onigbinde
Samson Itodo
Ezenwa Nwagwu
Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi
Ariyo-Dare Atoye
Ndidi Nwuneli
Issa Aremu
Hamzat Lawal
However, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, addressed the claim in a Facebook statement, calling the circulating list “fake news” that should be dismissed.
“The story on a viral list of national honours featuring the name of Aisha Yesufu and others credited to the Leadership newspaper is fake news. It should be ignored,” Ajayi stated.
He stated that the presidency has not released any additional names beyond those announced in President Tinubu’s official address to the National Assembly.
As part of Nigeria’s 2025 Democracy Day celebrations, President Tinubu recognised 66 individuals who contributed significantly to the country’s democratic development
