Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholo recently presented the 2025 budget to the State’s House of Assembly, and his struggle to deliver the budget’s numerical value sparked a wave of reactions.
However, the incident took a different turn when several Facebook posts claimed that the governor had arrested Goodluck Enaini, a reporter with the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), for his role in broadcasting the controversial budget speech.
As reported by TouchNfollow on Nairaland, “BREAKING: NTA Correspondent Arrested Over Okpebholo’s Budget Broadcast Gaffe” – the incident allegedly occurred when the governor’s security aides demanded that all media outlets shut down their coverage and surrender their cameras, but the NTA correspondent continued the live broadcast. However, this claim has been disputed by the reporter himself, who denied being arrested.
Findings by The Explainer showed that, in a post on his X handle, @enebome, Enaini stated, “My name is Goodluck Enaini, the @NTANewsNow reporter attached to @EdoStateGovt House in Benin City. Against the news making the rounds, I would like to state that I was not arrested by any government official.” He also urged people to stop spreading false information and propaganda.
The Explainer fact checker searched to verify if any credible media outlets published the news but found none.
Verification: FALSE
Conclusion:
The Explainer verifies that the claim of Okpebholo arresting an NTA reporter after his budget speech is false.
