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Claims: An X user, @SadiqMaunde, shared footage of an elderly man being assisted by handlers at a public gathering, claiming he was the president of an African country.
Verdict: Misleading. DUBAWA’s findings revealed that the man in the footage is not the president of any African country. He is General (Rtd) Moses Ali, an 86-year-old former Ugandan Second Deputy Prime Minister and currently a lawmaker representing Adjumani West Constituency in Uganda.
Full Text
An X user @SadiqMaunde has shared footage of an elderly man at a gathering being assisted by handlers, claiming he was the president of an African country.
“This is the president of one of the African countries. If I were a white man too, I wouldn’t see a black man as a human being,” he posted on May 26, 2026, at 9:47 am.
The social media data showed that as of May 27, 2026, the post had garnered over one million views, 908 comments, 1,700 reposts, 6k likes, and 1,500 bookmarks.
Reacting to the post, another X user, @DonEzekwu, criticised African leadership and drew comparisons with Nigerian politics.
He wrote: “It’s a pity how Africans make caricatures of themselves. That’s typical Tinubu [Nigeria’s President] mentality. Buhari is me, and I am Buhari. Why force bright people of God like Igbos to identify with you?”
However, a different user, @harding248, disputed the claim, stating that the man in the video was not a president but rather Uganda’s elderly statesman, Gen. (Rtd) Moses Ali.
“This isn’t the President of any African country. He’s Gen. (Rtd) Moses Ali, Uganda’s 86–87-year-old Second Deputy Prime Minister and long-serving MP for Adjumani West. Re-elected recently despite visible frailty. The real issue isn’t race it’s African leaders and voters clinging to power long past fitness for office. Same pattern from Museveni (81+) to others across the continent. Time for term limits and fresh blood, not excuses,” he wrote.
DUBAWA decided to investigate the claim due to its virality on X (formerly Twitter).
Verification
DUBAWA’s findings revealed that the man in the footage is not the president of any African country.
He is General (Rtd) Moses Ali, an 86-year-old former Ugandan Second Deputy Prime Minister and a current lawmaker representing Adjumani West Constituency in Uganda.
He was the Second Deputy Prime Minister of Uganda until May 27, 2026, when he was axed in an executive reshuffle by President Yoweri Museveni.
Museveni has appointed Ali’s son, Siraji Musa Ali, as the Minister of State for Works and Transport.
As the candidate of Uganda’s ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM), Ali polled 12,854 of the valid votes, thereby defeating three rivals to secure another term in Parliament in the 2026 General Election, Uganda’s TV 47 reported.
Gen. Ali’s closest rival, Patrick Tandripasi of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC), reportedly polled 11,770 of the valid votes.
Also, an independent candidate, Gasper Draga, polled 522 votes, while National Unity Platform (NUP) contender Stephen Lyo finished last with 293 votes, Uganda’s Monitor reported.
Gen. Moses Ali served as Uganda’s Second Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Leader of Government Business in Parliament.
His health condition, however, became a major topic of public discussion ahead of the elections, particularly among constituents in Adjumani West.
Conclusion
The elderly man captured in the viral footage is Uganda’s veteran lawmaker and former Second Deputy Prime Minister, Gen. (Rtd) Moses Ali, and not the president of any African country, as falsely claimed on X.
