I DON'T OPERATE ANY INSTAGRAM ACCOUNT, EX-PRESIDENT JONATHAN DISOWNS FAKE SOCIAL MEDIA HANDLE

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By: Sefiu Ajape

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has raised an alarm over impersonation by online fraudsters.

In a statement issued on Thursday by his media aide, Ikechukwu Eze, Jonathan said he is being impersonated through a fraudulent Instagram account falsely claiming to represent him.

The statement, titled ‘Beware of fake Instagram account impersonating H.E. Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’, revealed that the account in question is operating under the handle goodluck_ebelejonathan.

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“Our attention has been drawn to a fraudulent Instagram account operating under the handle goodluck_ebelejonathan, which is falsely impersonating former President Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.

“This impostor account has been deceitfully posting content, some copied from Dr. Jonathan’s Facebook page, while pretending to represent the former President.

“We wish to emphasise that Dr. Jonathan does not operate any Instagram account.

“The media and members of the public are strongly advised to disregard, avoid sharing, or promoting any content originating from this fake profile,” the statement read.

Meanwhile, a check conducted by our correspondent revealed a surprising and concerning detail. The Instagram account operating under the handle goodluck_ebelejonathan, which has been flagged by former President Goodluck Jonathan’s media team as fraudulent and impersonating him, is in fact verified by the platform.

This verification status—typically reserved for public figures, celebrities, and brands to confirm authenticity—raises further questions about how a fake account could attain such official recognition, potentially lending it undeserved credibility in the eyes of the public.

Interestingly, the fake Instagram account has over 360,000 followers and over 270 posts on its timeline.