Claim: Facebook user Betwi has attracted over 100,000 views after he posted a video of a red Cybertruck on his page, claiming it belonged to popular Ghanaian businessman Osei Kwame Despite.
Verdict: False! DUBAWA’s investigation has confirmed that Osei Kwame Despite’s Cybertruck has not been customised to red, as the viral Facebook video suggests. DUBAWA’s video analysis using the Invid tool and a Google Reverse Image Search revealed that the Cybertruck was customised by the Los Angeles-based company Forgiato in the United States.
Full Text
A Facebook page, Ghana Spotlight, with the handle BETWI, posted a video reel to its over 97,000 followers showing what it alleges to be the customised Tesla Cybertruck owned by Ghanaian businessman Osei Kwame Despite.
The video, published on Oct. 30, 2024, has raked in over 100,000 views on the platform. It was captioned: “[Kwame] Despite [has] finally customised his Cybertruck… money dey Ghana oo her ”.
The post has since gone viral, garnering 57 comments and 1,500 likes, with some bookmarks indicating how far it has trended on the Facebook platform.
The Tesla Cybertruck, an electric pickup truck by Tesla, Inc., has been produced since 2023 with a unique low-polygon body design. The news of Despite acquiring a polished silver Cybertruck in Oct. 2024 already stirred significant excitement online, so the viral post about a customised red version intrigued many.
The initial colour of the vehicle making rounds on social media was polished silver, but the post made by BETWI claimed that despite this, it was rather a red Cybertruck with customised red and black 30-inch rims.
Shortly after the claim was made, followers who commented on the page could not tell if the information was accurate.
A Facebook user, Happy Solo who chanced on the red Cybertruck post, first wrote, “Only in Ghana u can just change car colour without questioning or right procedure.”
Another user, Emmanuel Debrah Appau, who replied to Happy Solo’s comment, wrote:
“Happy Solo! Some of you are “too knowing” dodo. Even in the USA, it’s not every state you’ll have to notify the DMV before you can change your car color. Dabiaa only in Ghana. Ghana is an independent state; it has every right to have its own rules. If you don’t need to inform the police before changing colour, aa wei ɛyɛ asɛm bɛn?
The lack of clarity prompted DUBAWA to investigate BETWI’s claim to determine whether Despite had customised his car to colour red.
Verification
DUBAWA used the Invid verification tool, which showed thumbnails of the red Cybertruck, which is not from Ghana but in the USA. It was being customised by Forgiato, a custom wheel manufacturer based in Los Angeles, California.
The video circulated by BETWI was posted on YouTube three months ago by an account named Built By Bag and has since garnered over 45,000 views as of Nov. 7, 2024.
Again, DUBAWA’s Google Reverse Image Search showed a recent video of Osei Kwame Despite stepping out of his polished silver Cybertruck during an event in Ghana. He walked towards the camera and acknowledged a young man filming him as he walked towards his destination. The colour of the Cybertruck remained the same as it was when it was shipped into the country.
Meanwhile, on Nov. 6, 2024, some Ghanaians were spotted, in a video shared by Sika Official, a blogger, taking photos of the silver Cybertruck parked about 150 metres away from UTV, a media house owned by Osei Kwame Despite. The colour of the Cybertruck remained polished silver, and the car’s owner was Osei Kwame Despite, as reported by Ghanaian media outlet Yen.com.gh.
On Nov. 9, 2024, Dr Osei Kwame Despite was spotted driving his Cybertruck again at the final funeral rites of the late George Kofi Adjei, NPP Nhyiaeso Constituency Chairman, who passed away at the UGMC. The funeral took place at Baba Yara Sports Stadium. The colour remained unchanged.
Many videos of Osei Kwame Despite’s Cybertruck in Ghana can be seen here, here, and here, with none painted red.
Conclusion
The claim that Ghanaian businessman Osei Kwame Despite customised his polished silver Tesla Cybertruck to red, as shown in a viral Facebook video, is false.
