Shortly after the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) lost its quarter-final fixture against Algeria to a 119th-minute goal, viral posts on social media claimed a popular Congolese fan at the 2025 AFCON tournament had fallen.
Michel Nkuka Mboladinga, who stands like a statue throughout Congo’s matches mimics the signature pose of his country’s assassinated independence hero, Patrice Lumumba.
Nicknamed “Lumumba Vea” due to his striking resemblance to the original Lumumba, he is always sharply dressed in the colours of the DRC and has become the subject of multiple media reports (here, here, here). The purported collapse image had also been circulated across social media platforms (here, here, here, here). Our checks showed that the particular image was a doctored version of one that had been circulated at the beginning of the game.
You can read more from GhanaFact’s full report titled: “False! Viral ‘Lumumba statue’ fan at AFCON 2025 did not collapse after DRC lost to Algeria“
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