Video of mock funeral is not related to Nigerian finance minister’s resignation

“VIDEO: APC members perform mock obituary for Wale Edun. If they can do this amongst themselves, imagine what they will do to you. Kick APC out today,” reads an X post published on April 21, 2026, and reposted more than 3,000 times.

APC refers to the ruling All Progressives Congress party to which Nigerian President Bola Tinubu belongs.

The clip shows a white coffin resting on blue plastic chairs, with a portrait of Edun and what appears to be a condolence book placed on a chair in front of it. People can be seen taking turns to write in the book as others watch and record videos with their phones.

“People are gathered signing the condolence register, if you are interested,” a male voice can be heard saying in the background, while some people produce wailing sounds and others laugh.

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Screenshot of the false X post, taken on May 4, 2026

The claim was also shared elsewhere on Facebook and Instagram.

Edun, Tinubu's longtime associate, resigned on April 21 after serving as finance minister since August 2023 (archived here).

While he did not publicly state the reason for stepping down, initial reports indicated he had been sacked. Nigeria’s presidency later clarified that he resigned due to health reasons, not dismissal (archived here and here).

Speculation about Edun’s replacement emerged online in October 2025 after local media reported that he suffered a stroke. At the time, Tinubu's media adviser, Bayo Onanuga, said the minister was “only indisposed” (archived here).

He was succeeded by Taiwo Oyedele, a former PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) executive and chair of the presidential committee on fiscal policy and tax reforms (archived here). 

However, the claim that civil servants organised a mock funeral to celebrate Edun’s exit is false.

Old protest video

AFP Fact Check’s keyword search results found no reports from any credible media organisation linking the clip to Edun’s resignation.

Reverse image searches of the video’s keyframes led to a December 3, 2025, Facebook post by a page called Insights Links TV, with a video showing similar scenes (archived here).

According to the caption, it showed contractors owed by the government demanding payment for their services.

“Indigenous Contractors storm Federal Ministry of Finance with coffin, insist their entitlements must be paid now. Say Federal government owe them over N500bn for executed contracts (sic),” it reads.

Several details in the footage match those seen in the video shared on X, including the white coffin, the banners hanging from a white tent, and the rows of blue chairs beneath it.

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Screenshot comparing the false X post (left), and the December 2025 footage (right) taken on May 4, 2026

“As indigenous contractors in this country, Nigeria, the government has refused to pay us… We have gathered here with this coffin… Anyone that refuses to pay us, as our contractors have gone, they will also go with this coffin,” a man addressing the crowd says.

He then sips from a cup in his hand before spraying the liquid onto the ground beside the coffin and banging on it. 

Photos from the protest were published in a separate post on the same Facebook page the same day (archived here).

Local media outlets also reported on the protest and published images and videos from the event (archived here and here).

On May 4, 2026, Oyedele, Edun’s successor, held a meeting with the contractors to discuss the outstanding payments and plans to settle them (archived here).

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Screenshot showing the statement published on Oyedele's X account taken on May 19, 2026

“The minister emphasized that resolving these obligations is important not just for contractors, but for confidence in government, jobs, business continuity, and economic stability,” a statement published on Oyedele’s verified X account reads. “The minister is committed to resolving the issue as soon as possible in a manner that is orderly, credible, and equitable.”