FACT-CHECK: Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni is NOT dead

Claim: Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni is dead

Source: Social Media posts

Verdict: FALSE

Researched by Gifty Tracy Aminu

Multiple posts on social media (here, here and here) suggest Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni is dead.

The claim has generated hundreds of interactions on social media, amid speculations that he died a few days after testing positive for COVID-19.

In a post on social media, a Twitter user shared a screenshot of a supposed Wikipedia profile of President Yoweri Museveni which had been updated to say: ” He tested COVID-19 positive and passed away shortly while in isolation at statehouse Entebbe.”

This fact-check report seeks to verify the claim.

Background

On June 8, 2023, the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, announced on Twitter he tested positive for COVID-19 after experiencing mild flu-like symptoms a day before.

“Yesterday morning, however, I noticed some mild flu-like symptoms in one of the nostrils (the right one). That is when I called my doctors to take samples and rule out Corona. They took three samples- one rapid and two PCRs. The rapid one was negative, and so was one of the PCRs. However, one of the PCRs was positive,” the tweet from the official Twitter handle of the President said.

Fact–Check

However, checks by FactSpace show the claim that President Yoweri Museveni is dead is not accurate.

Reacting to the rumours that started on June 11, 2023, the official Twitter handle of Uganda’s President posted an update on his health and refuted claims that he has been admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

“It has been almost 2 days since I gave you an update on my war with Corona. Except for the first two days (Tuesday and Wednesday), when there was a mild flu-like fever but weaker than the usual flu. I only had some drowsiness on Thursday and a mild headache at night. This was up to Friday,” the June 13, 2023 tweet by the President explained.

“I also noticed some few individuals from, I think, Kenya, saying that I was in ICU etc. If I was in ICU, the government would inform the country. What is there to hide? However, I have not been to bed as a sick man in the house here except for sleeping, let alone being in a hospital bed, whether ICU or otherwise,” he said.

President Yoweri Museveni further advocated for vaccination against COVID-19: “I advise all of you to get fully vaccinated against Corona, and the elderly should get the boosters.”

Meanwhile, no credible news platform has reported any news about the death of President Yoweri Museveni.

On May 5, 2023, the World Health Organization deemed COVID-19 to be no longer a global health emergency but warned that the risk of new variants still remains.

Verdict

The claim that Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni is dead is FALSE.