TheCable Fact Check
  • Home
  • Fact Check
  • Fake News
  • Check Am For Wazobia
Reading: FACT CHECK: Did Matawalle bury luxury cars in secret underground tunnels?
Share
Latest News
CableCheck wins IFCN global fact check fund
Íhé ńgósị́ ébé Peter Obi sékpù àlà n’íhú Tinubu bụ̀ ǹkè é jìrì AI nwóghàrị̀á
Hoton Peter Obi ya durkusa ma Tinubu a Rome na hadi ne
Foto wey show as Peter Obi dey kneel down for Tinubu inside Vatican na photoshop
Peter Obi kò kúnlẹ̀ fún Tinubu ní Rome
FACT CHECK: No, Abia government didn’t block arrest of 59 youths by EFCC
Video wey show ‘bandits’ wit bundles of moni no be from Nigeria
Nàìjíríà kọ ni àwọn jagidijagan ti se àfihàn beeli, beeli owó nínú fídíò ti ṣẹlẹ̀
Advertisement
Aa
TheCable Fact CheckTheCable Fact Check
Search
  • Home
  • Fact Check
  • Fake News
  • Check Am For Wazobia
Follow US

FACT CHECK: Did Matawalle bury luxury cars in secret underground tunnels?

Claire Mom
By Claire Mom Published December 31, 2023 3 Min Read
Share

A viral photo on social media has alleged that Bello Matawalle, former governor of Zamfara, buried cars underground.

According to the photo’s caption, the cars which Matawalle — now minister of state for defence — allegedly buried were brand-new vehicles.

“O! Cry for our people and country!” the caption reads.

“Fleet of brand new vehicles bought and secretly buried in underground tunnels by ex-Governor Matawalle of Zamfara State. Why is the Black race this heartless?”

In the photo, cars that appear to be sport utility vehicles (SUVs) can be seen buried in the ground and covered with sand.

The picture, which was widely shared on WhatsApp, also appeared on an X page belonging to VANPDP, a self-acclaimed support group of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

According to the page, the vehicles were “Discovered and seized from Ex-Gov of Zamfara state, your current Minister of State for Defence”.

Since the post was made on December 14, it has so far gathered over 170k views, 598 likes, 428 retweets, and 374 likes.

“He must be prosecuted for stealing,” reads a comment from Emmanuel Enoidem, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and former national legal adviser to the PDP.

The claims also surfaced on TikTok on a page named awakeningafrica1 where it gathered over 811k views, 12.2k likes, 739 saves, 469 comments, and 353 shares.

But how true are the viral claims that the minister buried a fleet of cars underground?

Discovered and sized from Ex-Gov of Zamfara state, your current Minister of State for Defence. pic.twitter.com/o4ckB0vDi4

— VANPDP (@VANPDPNg) December 14, 2023

VERIFICATION

Subjecting the viral photo to a reverse image search, TheCable found that it was posted about three weeks before it began circulating on social media in Nigeria. 

“Look at what forces of IEA discover in Balkh Province,” an X post made on November 23 said.

Balkh is a province in northern Afghanistan, a country in south-central Asia. The Taliban militant group regained control of the country in 2021 and declared it the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA).

Another Reddit post also said the vehicles were “buried by former corrupt Afghan politicians before leaving Afghanistan”.

An internet crawl showed that reports dated December 4 said after Matawalle lost his reelection bid, he allegedly took over 50 state vehicles with him.

Dauda Lawal, governor of Zamfara, also accused Matawalle, his predecessor, of being in the custody of state official vehicles.

However, there have been no credible media reports of cars buried in Zamfara or anywhere in Nigeria — while there is also none to verify that the cars were found in Afghanistan either.

VERDICT

The claim that Matawalle buried a fleet of cars underground is unproven as there is no concrete evidence to support it.

TAGGED: Bello Matawalle, Zamfara governor

Please send your feedback, claims to fact check and corrections requests to [email protected]

Claire Mom April 9, 2024 December 31, 2023
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Email Copy Link Print
Leave a comment Leave a comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

POPULAR POSTS

Advertisement

CableCheck wins IFCN global fact check fund

CableCheck, the fact-checking initiative of the Cable Newspaper Journalism Foundation (CNJF), has been awarded the…

May 30, 2025

Íhé ńgósị́ ébé Peter Obi sékpù àlà n’íhú Tinubu bụ̀ ǹkè é jìrì AI nwóghàrị̀á

Ótù ihe ngosị nke a na-ekesa na soshal midia na-egosị ebe Peter Obi, onye jiri…

May 24, 2025

Hoton Peter Obi ya durkusa ma Tinubu a Rome na hadi ne

Wani hoton da ya yi zagayen a shafukan sada zumunta ya nuna Peter Obi, dan…

May 24, 2025

Foto wey show as Peter Obi dey kneel down for Tinubu inside Vatican na photoshop

One foto wey don waka for social media show as Peter Obi, presidential candidate of…

May 24, 2025
Advertisement
Advertisement

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

CableCheck wins IFCN global fact check fund

CableCheck, the fact-checking initiative of the Cable Newspaper Journalism Foundation (CNJF), has been awarded the BUILD 2025 grant by the…

Fact CheckTop Stories
May 30, 2025

FACT CHECK: No, Abia government didn’t block arrest of 59 youths by EFCC

A Facebook user has claimed that the Abia government blocked officers of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from…

Fact Check
May 24, 2025

FACT CHECK: Viral image of Peter Obi kneeling before Tinubu in Rome photoshopped

An image making the round on social media depicts Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in 2023,…

Fact Check
May 22, 2025

FACT CHECK: Video showing ‘bandits’ with bundles of cash NOT from Nigeria

A video circulating on social media is purportedly showing bandits sharing bundles of cash in Nigeria. In the nearly two-minute…

Fact Check
May 20, 2025

CableCheck seeks to provide reliable tools and resources for readers to tackle the menace of fake and misleading materials constantly pushed into the public space from various sources. We monitor the accuracy of claims made in traditional and social media. We also provide a tracker to hold politicians and policymakers accountable for the plans and promises they make to the public. CableCheck is a project of the Cable Newspaper Journalism Foundation (CNJF), supported by the MacArthur Foundation and implemented by TheCable newspaper.

Follow US: 

LINKS

  • Contact
  • About Us
  • Non-Partisanship Policy
  • Funding
  • Correction Policy
© Copyright TheCable. All Rights reserved.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?