Fact Check: Governor Ademola Adeleke’s Alleged ₦20,000 Campaign Fund Claim Is a Phishing Scam

 Claim: A message circulating on WhatsApp claims the Governor of Osun State, Ademola Adeleke, is giving ₦20,000 to people.

Verdict: False

Full Text 

A circulating WhatsApp message claims that Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke is giving ₦20,000 to each resident of the state.

The message, seen on 30 July 2026, reads:

 “GOVERNOR ADEMOLA ADELEKE (IMOLE) ₦20,000 CAMPAIGN FUNDS

The agenda is aimed as a token to the citizen of osun state.

IMOLE is giving out ₦20,000 to all the people of Osun State. 

HOW TO GET IT NOW 

Visit the link below and you will receive ₦20,000 instantly From ADEMOLA ADELEKE (IMOLE).

i just Received mine”.

Screenshot of the post circulating on WhatsApp

 Furthermore, a link was attached.

The post surfaced after the police in Osun arrested the Secretary to the State Government, Teslim Igbalaye, and five others during a raid on his Osogbo home, where they reportedly recovered N4.8 million, a Dynabook laptop, a photocopier, a printer, two voter cards, and a voter register for Wards 1–15.

As the Osun State governorship election approaches, politicians and their supporters may use various tactics to sway public opinion or implicate opponents. Given the personality named in the post, NDRFactcheck considered the claim significant enough to verify.

Verification

NDRFactcheck checked the website on ScamAdviser, which rated it very likely unsafe with a trust score of just 1%.

Screenshot from Scamadviser

Furthermore, a review of the official social media handle of Governor Ademola Adeleke did not show any verified announcement that he is distributing ₦20,000 to every resident of Osun State.

Moreover, vote-buying is a crime under the Electoral Act 2026, and distributing such money so close to the 15 August governorship election could amount to vote-buying.

We also found out that this instance is not the first time such claims have circulated.

In 2022, fact-checkers investigated a similar viral message claiming that Ademola Adeleke was giving Nigerians ₦10,000 campaign funds through an online registration portal.

Conclusion

The investigation found the claim to be false and identified the website as a phishing scheme designed to collect users’ personal information.

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