Pope Leo XIV (born
Robert Francis Prevost; September 14, 1955) is the bishop of Rome, head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the
Vatican City State. He was elected pope in the 2025 conclave on May 8, following the death and funeral of Pope Francis.
Claim
An account on X (formerly Twitter) named "Pope Leo XIV"
posted,
"Kenya and Uganda will be the first and second countries I visit once I begin my world tour this year."
Verdict: False (Impersonation)
After investigating the claim, JamiiCheck
found it to be false. The account named "Pope Leo XIV" is a
parody and not an authentic account of Pope Leo XIV. The
genuine X account of Pope Leo XIV is different from the one making this claim.
The
impersonator created the account shortly after the election of the new Pope and has been posting various misleading messages, pretending to speak as the Pope. Previously, the account shared unrelated and inconsistent posts.
Additionally, a further investigation found no evidence suggesting that Pope Leo XIV has plans for a world tour, including visits to Africa, this year. Historically,
Popes who have visited Uganda include:
- Pope Paul VI in 1969
- Pope John Paul II in 1993
- Pope Francis in 2015
Pope Leo XIV (then Cardinal Robert)
did visit Uganda in 2015 as part of the delegation accompanying Pope Francis, serving as a translator for the Pontiff during the trip.
