Claim: An X user, Gen. Buhari, has posted a video claiming that John Mahama said, “The NDC government will plant grasses across the country so that cows can also get food to eat.”
Verdict: Misleading.Even though John Mahama mentioned planting for cows and sheep, he did not mention that it would be across the country. Rather, he specifically referred to Afram Plains. His statement has been taken out of context.
Full Text
An X user, Gen. Buhari, posted a short video of part of John Mahama’s interaction with the people of Afram Plains with the caption,
“The NDC govt will plant grasses across the country so that cows can also get food to eat– John Mahama Eiiii” The post, made on X on November 22, has received 52,700 views, over 600 likes, close to 100 reposts, and 100 quotes.
The video Gen. Buhari posted was taken from the TikTok page of Nyamekye Yawson (@marbledj), which has over 104,100 views.
In the video, the flagbearer for the National Democratic Congress is heard saying in the Twi language, “When the NDC comes, we will take good care of the place and grow plants that cows and sheep like to eat.”
Due to the post, users have chastised the former president for making such statements. A user commented on X,
“You’ve been in opposition for 8 years and want to gain power but see the nonsense you are saying. What a shame.”
These comments, fuelled by Gen Buhari’s caption that Mahama’s statement was about the whole of Ghana, show that people bought into the post. As a result, DUBAWA decided to verify if the statement was made by the NDC flag bearer.
Verification
Seeing the UTV logo and “live” watermarked on the video, DUBAWA surfed the official YouTube page of UTV and found that the video was from a live telecast of Prime Time News on UTV on Thursday, November 21st.
The total news telecast was 59 minutes and 54 seconds. However, the part that showed John Mahama’s interaction with the people of Afram Plains as part of his tour started at 10 minutes and 13 seconds of the video.
After listening to the full clip, which ended at 11 minutes and 54 seconds, DUBAWA realised that the short clip posted on X had been taken out of context.
Additionally, a closer look at the video published by the claimant showed that some parts of the clip were cut out and joined with others to make the statement sound like it was made about the whole of Ghana.
In the full clip, John Mahama said,
“At the time that Rawlings was there, we came to create a place for those who rear cows and animals to take their animals for feeding.
Since then, the government has not kept its eye on the place. When the NDC comes, we will take care of the place and refurbish it and plant the kinds of plants that cows and sheep like to eat.”
DUBAWA realised that he made this statement after promising to set up a cattle ranch where grasses would be grown to feed the cattle to avoid quarrels between the herdsmen and farmers.
DUBAWA also found the original clip which was streamed on the Facebook page of Woezor TV.
The exact statement can be found from 40 minutes 30 seconds onwards.
DUBAWA’s assessment of the entire video revealed that Mr Mahama’s pledge was solely focused on the people of Afram Plains and not the whole of Ghana. His statement has been taken out of context.
Conclusion
The claim that John Mahama said that the NDC government would plant grasses across the country so that cows can also get food to eat is false. DUBAWA’s checks show that the video was taken out of context.
This report was produced under the DUBAWA “Combating Election Misinformation and Disinformation in Ghana’s 2024 Elections” Project aimed at promoting a culture of truth and verification ahead of the 2024 General Elections with support from the Federal Republic of Germany in Ghana.
Source: Ghana Fact-Checking Coalition