Fact check: Is it True Tribunal Judges Were Offered Bribes to Give Judgement on 2023 Election?

Fact check: Is it True Tribunal Judges Were Offered Bribes to Give Judgement on 2023 Election?

  • Claims have appeared online saying Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem allegedly said Bola Tinubu had “failed”
  • The poster said the 2023 presidential election petition tribunal had been offered tempting bribes
  • A fact-checking platform investigated the claim and shared its findings in a report published on Friday, June 28

Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering politics and public journalism in Nigeria.

FCT, Abuja - A Facebook post attributed a controversial statement to Justice Monica Bolna'an Dongban-Mensem, the president of the court of appeal.

Legit.ng recalls that in September 2023, the presidential election tribunal rejected challenges by opposition leaders to Bola Tinubu's win in the February 2023 disputed poll.

No evidence tribunal judges were offered bribes to give judgement on 2023 election in Nigeria
Bola Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar, and Peter Obi, were the top three candidates in the 2023 Nigeria's presidential election. Photo credits: Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Atiku Abubakar, Mr. Peter Obi
Source: Facebook

The post reads:

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"Just In: I oversees (sic) the worst Presidential election petition since the history of Nigeria, the money offered to us, was what no judge can overlook, Tinubu failed woefully - Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem purportedly express regret.”

Verification of the claim about 2023 election

The claim can also be found here, and here.

But is it true that after the appeal court president said the 2023 presidential election tribunal was offered bribes? A fact-checking platform, Africa Check, investigated.

Following its scrutiny, the fact-checking platform ruled that there is no evidence that Justice Dongban-Mensem made the statement attributed to her.

More to read on 2023 election

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2023 election: Obi advised to move on

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Middle-Belt Pan Nigerian Forum, representing a coalition of Civil Society Organisations, called upon Labour Party (LP) candidate, Peter Obi, to accept the results of the 2023 Nigerian general elections and proceed forward.

In a statement released by Danladi Ceceko, the spokesperson for the group, the coalition affirmed that the election outcomes, culminating in the triumph of Tinubu of the All-Progressives Congress (APC), mirrored the desires of the Nigerian populace.

Proofreading by James Ojo Adakole, journalist and copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Ridwan Adeola avatar

Ridwan Adeola (Current Affairs Editor) Ridwan Adeola Yusuf is a Current Affairs Editor at Legit.ng and a certified journalist with over 9 years of experience. He edited Politics Nigeria's articles, was the Acting Editor of AllNews Nigeria and Fact-Checking Researcher (Africa Check). He received his HND in Mass Communication from The Polytechnic Ibadan. He received a Certificate of Achievement (Journalism Clinic’s Fix The Leak masterclass, 2021) and also completed Google News Initiative's Advance digital reporting curriculum. Contact him at ridwan.adeola@corp.legit.ng.

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