The Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala,
has taken to her X (formerly Twitter) platform to debunk a misleading post from a fake account on Facebook impersonating her.
She issued a strong statement condemning the misuse of her name and image for political purposes.
Her post on X read, “THIS IS IMPORTANT – It appears that there are people in Nigeria trying to use my name and image on social media to fight battles on different sides of the political divide, putting words in my mouth that I never said. Therefore, I want to alert everyone that the message below is FAKE. This is a stern warning to all those trying to misuse my name for their political ends that I will continue to rebut any attempts to use my name and image falsely!” Okonjo-Iweala posted.
Her response was triggered by a post on Facebook, where a user posing as her claimed that Nigeria’s debt had risen to 24 trillion in two months following the removal of the fuel subsidy. The fake post also falsely claimed that she had attempted to offer advice to the current administration but was ignored.
The fabricated message on Facebook filled with grammatical blunders read, “Nigeria debt for the first time in history has risen to 24 trillion in just two months even after removing subsidy is something unbelievable. I call several times to help and advise but the current administration and cabals refuse to let me come in. How can you remove fuel subsidy with a debt of 24 trillion in two months.”
Okonjo-Iweala’s rebuttal highlights the ongoing issue of false information and impersonation on social media, urging the public to be vigilant and discerning about the authenticity of such posts.
Melissa Enoch
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