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A publication by Hardtruthgh.com with the headline, “JUST IN: Obuasi Government Hospital Closes Down As COVID-19 Cases Escalate Abnormally In The Hospital” on 27th June, 2020 claims that the Obuasi Government Hospital has been closed down due to an overwhelming number of COVID-19 cases.
The publication has been making rounds on social media and shared on other Facebook pages.
The report says the hospital was notified not to operate from Monday, June 29, 2020, however, its management had decided to stop operating from Saturday June 27, 2020 until further notice.
Fact-chechghana.com looked into this claim and finds it to be completely false.
Explanation:
Obuasi, a town in the Ashanti Region of Ghana is among the towns that have reported cases of COVID-19.
At a point in May 2020, it became a hotspot for the spread of COVID-19, warranting a mass testing of high-risk groups in the area such as drivers and food vendors.
Fact-chechghana.com found the news publication on the closure of the government hospital there to be curious because the story did not quote or cite any official source for its information.
The publication is scanty and lacks relevant details such as who issued the letter for the closure and who gave the directive for the actual closure of the facility on Saturday.
Our probe further showed that the publication was a satirical piece and had no factual basis.
The website had stated at an obscure location of its homepage that it was a satirical website and its stories are fictitious.
Monitoring comments on the post from some Facebook users, we came across a comment by someone who said she is a nurse at the facility and that the post was false.
“Total lie, am currently on night shift,” she posted.
Following up to her Facebook profile, we saw it publicly listed that she is a midwife and lives in Obuasi.
Even though the website says it is a satirical portal, the content of this story has no element of satire. It appears to be fake news intended as a click bait.
