Claim:

Governor Alex Otti Bans Cow Imports from northern Nigeria, Urges Abians to
Switch to Fish or Ehi-Igbo

Verdict: False

Tantancewa fact-checkers have spotted a viral claim published on blogs and being
shared on social media platforms including X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and
WhatsApp groups. The claim credited a statement to Governor of Abia state, Alex Otti,
saying he banned import of cows from northern Nigeria and urged people of Abia to
instead switch to fish or Ehi-Igbo. The claim’s caption says: “Governor Alex Otti Bans
Cow Imports from Northern Nigeria, Urges Abians to Switch to Fish or Ehi-Igbo”
The other parts of the claim say: “Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has announced a ban
on the importation of cows from Northern Nigeria, urging residents to opt for fish or the
indigenous Ehi-Igbo breed instead.”
“The decision follows reports alleging that cattle from the North are injected with
harmful substances that do not kill instantly but cause long-term health issues over the
years. Governor Otti described this as a "slow extermination" of the Igbo people by
certain elements from the North.”
The claim was published by dailyexcessive.com, @UPDONTVNEWS, Aliyu Shuaibu
Pambegua and several other WhatsApp groups.

Fact:

Investigation conducted by Tantancewa fact-checkers found that the viral claim is
entirely fake. Governor Alex Otti never banned import of cows from northern Nigeria in
Abia state as claimed by the fake viral short story.
Investigation conducted by Tantancewa fact-checkers found that the claim is fake as no
document (audio, video, text, image, etc.) can be seen where the Governor made the
claim
Hon. Okey Kanu, Abia state Commissioner for Information confirmed that the claim is
fake and the Gov. Alex Otti never made such statement anywhere.
Hon. Okey said, ‘His Excellency never said such a thing, no such thing happened, it’s
just a kind of blind propaganda from the opposition in my state, the gov never said such a
thing’

‘It never happened, it’s just a nasty claim and that is the reason we don’t want to respond
as a government respond to such nonsense.’
Emphasizing the falsity of the claim, Ho. Okey added: ‘come to Abia I will show where
governor is keeping cows you will count not less than fifty to hundred cows there, so why
will he ban what he houses, it doesn’t make sense, that is why we don’t want to respond
to it, we can’t a government response to everything from the opposition, there is nothing
like that.’

Conclusion:

The viral claim published on blogs and different social media platforms saying Gov. Alex
Otti of Abia state has banned import of cows from northern Nigeria is fake. The
Governor made the claim, the public is therefore advised to disregard it and stop sharing
it.