An X (formerly Twitter) post claiming that Bala Mohammed, the Bauchi State Governor, is a spendthrift for buying brand new SUVs for Emirs in the state has sparked outrage on the microblogging site.

The post, shared by @Miniko_Jnr on Saturday evening, has garnered over 68,000 views, with many commenters expressing their displeasure at the state of governance in the country.

“While Nigerians are dying of hunger, Bauchi State Governor is brandishing his Emirs with brand new SUVs,” @Miniko_Jnr posted.

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CLAIM: The post alleges that despite the current economic situation in the country, Governor Bala Mohammed spent a significant amount on new vehicles for Emirs.

VERIFICATION: Although Bala Mohammed remains the Governor of Bauchi State, there is no evidence to support the claim that he recently purchased vehicles for emirs.

However, on April 7, 2022, the governor did present 58 exotic cars to emirs, district heads, and local government chairmen across the state’s 20 local government areas. Specifically, 38 cars were given to the emirs across the six emirates, while each of the 20 local government chairmen received one vehicle. The Ministry of Local Government Affairs also received two Toyota Hilux vehicles and six more were distributed to local government offices. It appears that this is the incident that the poster took out of context.

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Governor Mohammed explained that this gesture was in response to a request made the previous year by Rilwan Suleiman, Emir of Bauchi, who asked the government to provide vehicles to assist the district heads in their duties.

In June 2022, the governor donated 60 brand-new cars to individuals he described as “critical stakeholders” in Bauchi’s 20 local government areas.

In a Facebook post on June 19, 2022, he stated, “Today, I donated 60 brand-new cars to critical stakeholders in the 20 local government areas of the state. The gesture was to appreciate their outstanding performance and tremendous support to my administration.

“I also pledged to continue to do more, acknowledging the success of my administration is due to the support and sportsmanship of these local government coordinators.”

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A VEHICLE-LOVING GOVERNOR:

In September 2019, Governor Mohammed approved a contract for the supply of 105 vehicles for top government officials, legislators, and judges.

The governor, who is a director in the company awarded the contract, violated federal and state laws by approving it for a company he is connected to, which is controlled by his close ally, Abdullahi Yari. The evidence indicates that similar vehicles had already been purchased by the same state government between May and September 2019.

VERDICT: The claim that “While Nigerians are dying of hunger, Bauchi State Governor is brandishing his Emirs with brand new SUVs” is misleading, as there is no evidence showing Governor Mohammed recently purchased a new set of vehicles for the emirs.

However, the governor’s history of extravagant spending on vehicles is well-documented.