Published 18th Feb, 2024

By Opeyemi Lawal

On Saturday, an X user, Omoelerinjare, shared a video stating that people were protesting against economic hardship and hunger at the palace of the Emir of Ilorin, Kwara State.

He stated that the protest happened on the day he shared the video, and as of Sunday afternoon, the video has been seen over 350,000 times. It has also garnered about 2,500 likes and over 1,800 reposts.

He captioned the video: “Serious protest at the Emir’s Palace in Ilorin Kwara State! ‘We are Hungry, The state is Hungry.”

The people in the video chanted in Yoruba, “The people are hungry,” in response to a call from a masculine voice leading the chorus.

Breaking News: Serious protest at the Emir's Palace in Ilorin Kwara State!

" We are Hungry, The state is Hungry" pic.twitter.com/7lnoy0Fa7U
— ÓMÒÉLÉRÍNJÁRÉ (@omoelerinjare) February 17, 2024

Some media outlets and verified X users have also recirculated this video with the same claim here, here, here and here.

CLAIM: Residents of Kwara State protested in front of the Emir’s Palace on Saturday, February 17, 2024.

VERIFICATION: FIJ found that the video had been published by blogs with similar claims of fresh protests in 2021. FIJ found the video was mostly posted online in May. Some of the blogs that posted this video at the time published it here, here and here.

Meanwhile, Abdulazeez Arowona, the spokesperson for the emir, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari, has also faulted the use of the video to portray a fresh protest.

Arowona claimed that the video was part of the events that preceded the 2019 general elections.

CONCLUSION: Claims that residents of Kwara State protested against hunger and economic hardship at the Emir’s Palace on Saturday are false.

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