Your weekly fact-checks
#Elections2024
This week's election: Venezuela Presidential Election
The New York Times
Election Date: 28/07/2024
The outcome of Venezuela’s presidential election, which will take place on July 28, will be consequential for the future of the country’s democracy. Venezuela’s economy imploded nearly a decade ago, prompting one of the world’s largest displacements in Latin American history. The flow of Venezuelans and other migrants to the United States has become a dominant theme in the U.S. presidential campaign. This is the first Venezuelan election in over a decade in which an opposition candidate has a reasonable chance of winning.
#Politics
PolitiFact
False: There are nine states “where Biden’s name can’t be removed and no one can be added. That’s over 130 electoral votes in the toilet.”
President Joe Biden was the presumptive — not official — Democratic presidential nominee until he announced on July 21 that he would be dropping out of the race. The official nominee will be chosen either in the run-up to the Democratic National Convention that starts Aug. 19 or at the convention itself. States set deadlines for receiving the names of presidential nominees so that ballots can be printed. Those deadlines are generally after the convention.
PolitiFact
False: “The state of Washington has already sent out their ballots” for the 2024 presidential election.
Washington sent out ballots for its Aug. 6 statewide primary election, which does not include a presidential primary. It held its presidential primary earlier this year, on March 12. President Joe Biden won Washington’s Democratic presidential primary in March, according to the certified election results. Biden has since dropped out of the race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris. Under Washington law, presidential candidates must be certified for the November ballot by Aug. 20, which falls before the Democratic nominee could be formally elected at the Democratic National Convention. Washington’s secretary of state will accept a letter from the Democratic National Committee attesting to the party’s alternate nominee, a spokesperson said.
Snopes
True: Former U.S. President Donald Trump once donated to Kamala Harris' campaign.
Campaign finance records showed Trump donated $5,000 to Harris' reelection campaign for California attorney general in 2011. He also donated $1,000 to the same campaign in 2013. Separately, Trump's daughter Ivanka Trump donated $2,000 to Harris' reelection effort in California in 2014.
#Conflicts
Snopes
False: The injury Trump sustained during a July 13, 2024, assassination attempt wasn't caused by a bullet but by broken glass.
Despite an increasingly clear picture of the timing and location of shots fired on former U.S. President Donald Trump during an attempted assassination at a July 13, 2024, Trump rally, skepticism over the question of whether or not Trump was hit with a bullet or was struck by a piece of glass remained on social media days later. There was, however, no evidence to suggest anything other than a bullet caused the wound to Trump's ear.
#Healthcare
Africa Check
False: Guava leaves and a white clay mixture can cure cholera, dysentery and diarrhoea.
As Nigeria continues to battle a cholera outbreak, several Facebook posts claim that a combination of guava leaves and white clay can cure cholera, dysentery and diarrhoea. But we found no evidence to support this, and medical experts say it's largely untrue.
Lead Stories
False: Switzerland banned mammograms as of July 2024.
Switzerland's Federal Department of Home Affairs has stated that "mammography is not banned at all in Switzerland." It is covered by health insurance and recommended by health experts for women over 40.
#Economy
Full Fact
False: For every pound Scotland earns, Westminster taxes Scotland 63%.
A post shared on Facebook claims the Barnett formula means “For every pound Scotland earned, Westminster taxed Scotland 63% in the pound. It’s not entirely clear what this claim is based on. In 2022/23, the UK government collected approximately three-quarters of public sector revenue generated in Scotland.
Africa Check
False: Nigeria's Corporate Affairs Commission says getting your tax identification number costs N18,000.
Online messages are asking Nigerians to pay N18,000 to get your tax identification number, Nigeria's Corporate Affairs Commission warns. Nigeria's Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) is responsible for issuing tax identification numbers (TINs). TIN is free and automatically generated from the Federal Inland Revenue Service.
#Technology
Factly
False: TRAI in India is offering free mobile recharge.
TRAI is not offering any free mobile recharge. Providing recharges or directing telecom companies to offer free recharge to users is not within TRAI’s mandate. One must be cautious about clicking on fraudulent links, as they may lead to data breaches or financial fraud. Hence, the claim made in the post is false.
#WTF?! What The Fact of the week
Snopes
True: U.S. military dogs always outrank their handlers.
All dogs in the U.S. military, per tradition, outrank their handlers. According to the U.S. Army website, dogs on active duty are, traditionally, always noncommissioned officers (NCOs), also known as petty officers in the Navy. An NCO is a leader of a unit that has not received a rank or been commissioned. They supervise soldiers during missions when a commissioned officer is not present. They also act as assistants to commissioned officers.
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