Background on the alleged apology
Social media users have been sharing a snippet that claims the suspended governor of Nigeria’s Rivers State, who was removed during an emergency rule, sent an apology to his predecessor. The post went viral, prompting several news sites to repeat the claim without verification.
When africacheck.org was asked to verify the story, the fact‑check team could not locate any official statement, press release, or credible witness that confirmed the apology ever took place. The organization’s standard practice is to search government archives, reputable news outlets, and direct communications from the parties involved. None of these sources contained the alleged apology.
Why the claim emerged now
President Bola Tinubu announced last week that the emergency rule in Rivers State is being lifted and that Governor Siminalayi Fubara, who had been suspended, is being reinstated. The move ended a months‑long standoff that saw the federal government step in after clashes between security forces and local activists.
The political drama created a vacuum that rumor‑mongers quickly filled. Some commentators suggested that an apology could smooth relations between the former and current administrations, but the evidence simply isn’t there. Analysts point out that the governor’s suspension was tied to alleged irregularities in public procurement, not personal disputes that would warrant a public apology.
In the absence of concrete proof, the fact‑check team advises readers to treat the story as unverified. They stress the importance of checking original sources before sharing sensational claims, especially in a volatile political environment like that of Rivers State.
For now, the focus remains on how the reinstated administration will address the challenges left by the emergency rule. Issues such as oil revenue allocation, infrastructure projects, and security concerns are top of the agenda, and any genuine gestures of reconciliation are likely to come in the form of policy decisions rather than a disputed apology.
Comments
Deborah Canavan
September 26, 2025 AT 08:58 AMIt's wild how fast rumors spread when there's political chaos. One minute you're scrolling through TikTok and someone's claiming a governor just bowed down to his predecessor like it's a Shakespearean drama, next thing you know it's on three news sites with zero sourcing. I get why people want a redemption arc-nobody likes seeing power struggles play out like a soap opera-but the truth is, if there was an apology, someone would've leaked a video, a text, a signed letter, anything. The silence speaks louder than any viral post.
And honestly, the timing makes zero sense. Why apologize now, right before reinstatement? If he wanted to make peace, he'd have done it months ago when he was still in office. This feels less like reconciliation and more like someone trying to manufacture a narrative that fits the ending people want to see.
Fact-checkers aren't being pedantic here-they're protecting the public from emotional manipulation disguised as news. We're not just talking about a lie; we're talking about a story engineered to make people feel something: relief, hope, schadenfreude. That's dangerous when it's not grounded in fact.
It's not even about who's right or wrong in Rivers State. It's about the erosion of trust in every claim that comes through our feeds. If we keep rewarding this kind of clickbait with shares and outrage, we're just feeding the machine that turns politics into entertainment. And nobody wins when the truth gets buried under memes.
Maybe the real story is what happens next-not some mythical apology, but how the new administration actually handles the oil funds, the security forces, the schools. That’s the stuff that matters. Not whether a man said sorry to another man on the internet.
Anyway, I’m just glad someone finally checked this. The alternative is a future where every political rumor is treated as gospel until someone with a bigger platform says otherwise. And that’s a future I don’t want to live in.
Thomas Rosser
September 26, 2025 AT 14:36 PMThey didn’t check the encrypted Telegram group where the apology was recorded. 😏
Of course the ‘fact-checkers’ didn’t find it. They’re paid by the same people who installed the emergency rule. The governor didn’t apologize publicly because the audio was wiped from all government servers-standard procedure when you’re covering up a coerced confession. I’ve seen this before in Venezuela. Same playbook.
They’re calling it ‘no proof’ but they’re not looking for the proof. They’re looking to silence it. The real story? The governor was forced to record a private apology in Pidgin English on a burner phone, then the device was dropped in the Niger Delta. The footage is in the hands of the Ijaw elders. They’re waiting for the right moment to release it. 🕵️♂️
Also, the fact-check site is funded by Shell. Coincidence? I think not. 🤫
They want you to think this is about truth. It’s about control.
Next up: ‘No proof that the moon landing happened.’
Joshua Johnston
September 28, 2025 AT 03:29 AMLet’s be real for a second. This isn’t about whether an apology happened. It’s about what we’re willing to believe when it suits our emotional needs. People don’t want facts-they want closure. They want to believe that power is humble, that leaders are capable of growth, that redemption is possible. That’s why this rumor spread like wildfire.
But here’s the thing: politics isn’t a Netflix drama. It’s messy, ugly, and rarely involves public groveling. If this guy had apologized, it would’ve been quiet. Behind closed doors. With lawyers present. Not on TikTok.
And let’s not pretend that the fact-checkers are saints. They’re just the latest gatekeepers in a system that’s always been selective about what truths they’ll validate. But this time, they got it right. The apology doesn’t exist. And that’s okay.
What matters now is whether the new administration fixes the corruption, not whether someone said ‘sorry’ to someone else. We’re still talking about a system where oil money vanishes into offshore accounts while kids go to school in leaking roofs. That’s the real crisis.
Stop chasing narrative. Start demanding accountability.
And if you’re still sharing this rumor? You’re part of the problem, not the solution.
Kerry Keane
September 29, 2025 AT 18:08 PMso like... no proof at all? not even a text? weird that everyone just made this up outta nowhere
Elliott martin
September 30, 2025 AT 03:05 AMi wonder why people feel the need to invent these kinds of stories. like is it because we’re so starved for good endings? or because we think if someone says sorry it means everything’s fixed? but it’s not like a public apology fixes broken systems. you can say sorry all day but if the money’s still disappearing... what does it even mean?
Shelby Hale
September 30, 2025 AT 03:43 AMOH MY GOD. A GOVERNOR APOLOGIZED? IN NIGERIA? WHERE THE ONLY THING MORE RARE THAN A HONEST POLITICIAN IS A HONEST PRESS RELEASE?
Let me get this straight-somebody invented a moment of human vulnerability in a place where power is measured in bullet counts and bank transfers, and the whole internet lost its mind like it was the finale of The Crown?
What’s next? ‘No Proof That a Nigerian Minister Didn’t Steal a Helicopter’? ‘No Proof That the President Didn’t Cry During Budget Meeting’? We are living in the age of emotional fairy tales dressed as politics.
And the worst part? We WANT to believe it. Because if a man can apologize, then maybe, just maybe, we’re not all doomed.
But no. No apology. Just another lie wrapped in hope. And we still shared it. We’re the problem.
Send help. Or at least send a fact-checker with a flamethrower.
Jeffrey Frey
September 30, 2025 AT 14:31 PMOf course there’s no proof. Why would they release it? That’s the whole point of the cover-up. The apology happened, but it was recorded in a private meeting with the military brass and the oil execs. They made him say it so they could use it as leverage later. Now they’re pretending it never happened because they’re scared someone will leak it and expose the whole corruption network.
And you think fact-checkers are neutral? LMAO. They’re part of the system. They’re paid to bury inconvenient truths. You think they’d ever admit that a governor had to beg for his job back? That would make the federal government look weak.
Meanwhile, the real victims? The people who lost their jobs, their homes, their dignity during the emergency rule. They don’t care about a fake apology. They care about justice. But no one’s asking them.
So yeah. No proof. Because the proof was destroyed. Just like the evidence in every other case. Welcome to Nigeria, where the truth is a liability.
And you’re still here? 😏
Jeremy Ramsey
October 2, 2025 AT 13:55 PMMan, I love how fast we turn politics into soap operas. Apology? Nah. But I get it-we all want a good story. Someone admitting fault? That’s the kind of thing you’d see in a movie where the villain turns good before the credits roll.
But real life? It’s way less dramatic. People don’t apologize on Twitter. They just stop doing the bad stuff. Or they keep doing it and hope no one notices.
Meanwhile, the real story is still sitting in the background: the oil funds, the roads that haven’t been fixed since 2015, the kids walking 10km to school. That’s what we should be yelling about.
And hey-maybe the governor did apologize. Maybe he didn’t. Honestly? I don’t care. What I care about is whether he’s gonna fix the power grid. That’s the only ‘apology’ that matters now.
Also, Nigeria’s political drama is more intense than Game of Thrones. And no one dies in the end. They just get promoted.
Henry Huynh
October 3, 2025 AT 03:00 AMso basically the whole internet made up a moment of humility just to feel better about the chaos? chill. we dont need apologies we need systems that dont let this happen in the first place