What is circulating vs the facts

What is circulating

“Speaking to reporters on 24 September 2025, Jeffries said: "Republicans have effectively ended medical research in the United States of America."”

Claimed by Hakeem Jeffries · official statement

The facts

PolitiFact rated the claim Mostly False. Trump's budget proposed cutting National Institutes of Health funding from about $45 billion to about $27 billion, roughly 39 percent, and the administration terminated grants worth about $5 billion. But NIH would still receive more than $27 billion under that plan, and House and Senate appropriators voted for modest increases instead.

Fact check: PolitiFact

What is circulating

“On Fox News Sunday on 28 September 2025, Vance said Democrats were "threatening to shut down the entire government because they want to give hundreds of billions of dollars" in health care to immigrants in the country illegally.”

Claimed by JD Vance · official statement

The facts

PolitiFact rated the claim False. Immigrants in the U.S. illegally are generally ineligible for Medicare, Medicaid and ACA marketplace coverage, and emergency Medicaid was under 1 percent of Medicaid spending in fiscal 2023. The Democratic proposal would restore coverage for lawfully present immigrants such as refugees; KFF estimated the Republican law's provisions on legal immigrants would cut federal spending by $131 billion.

Fact check: PolitiFact

What is circulating

“A news headline quotes Finance Minister Purbaya asking the public to donate to the state if they want the economy to advance.”

Claimed by Social media users · social media

The facts

The screenshot altered a Gelora News article from 9 September 2025 in which Purbaya apologised for calling the "17+8" protest demands the voice of a small part of the public. No article quoting him asking for donations exists.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“A video shows Prabowo naming Anies Baswedan as Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs.”

Claimed by Social media users · social media

The facts

The clip was altered from Prabowo's announcement of his cabinet on 20 October 2024, when he named Budi Gunawan to the post. After Budi Gunawan was removed on 8 September 2025, Prabowo swore in Djamari Chaniago as coordinating minister on 17 September 2025.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“PDI-P chair Megawati Soekarnoputri is the mastermind blocking the Asset Forfeiture Bill.”

Claimed by Social media users · social media

The facts

There is no record of Megawati rejecting the bill, which PPATK first proposed in 2008 and which stalled across three presidencies. Former minister Mahfud MD said Megawati told him she supported asset forfeiture but feared police and prosecutors could abuse it for extortion if applied immediately, and a PDI-P campaign official said in 2023 that the party backed the bill but saw loose articles.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“Speaking at the PKS national conference on 29 September 2025, Prabowo said food poisoning and other failures in the free meals programme (MBG) amounted to only 0.00017 percent.”

Claimed by Prabowo Subianto, President · official statement

The facts

Against the 30 million recipients Prabowo cited, 0.00017 percent equals about 51 cases. The National Nutrition Agency itself reported 71 poisoning incidents by 27 September and told the DPR on 1 October 2025 that 6,457 people had been affected, while the monitoring network JPPI counted 8,649 children poisoned by 27 September.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“"Indonesia is currently one of the largest contributors of United Nations peacekeepers," Prabowo said at the UN General Assembly on 23 September 2025.”

Claimed by Prabowo Subianto, President · official statement

The facts

UN Peacekeeping data as of 31 July 2025 put Indonesia fifth among troop and police contributors with 2,766 personnel. Nepal (6,039), Rwanda (5,905), Bangladesh (5,685) and India (5,373) contributed more, so Indonesia is one of the largest but not the largest.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“At the UN General Assembly on 23 September 2025, Prabowo said: "This year we recorded the highest rice production and wheat reserves in our history. We are now self-sufficient in rice."”

Claimed by Prabowo Subianto, President · official statement

The facts

BPS data back the rice part: production reached 21.76 million tonnes in January to July 2025, 2.83 million tonnes more than a year earlier, and there were no rice imports through September 2025 after 4.52 million tonnes in 2024. Kompas found no valid data for a record wheat reserve; Indonesia does not grow wheat and imported 728,020 tonnes of wheat and meslin in early 2025 alone.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“A video shows Cambodians in Phnom Penh protesting against Hun Sen and Prime Minister Hun Manet over deaths in the border conflict with Thailand.”

Claimed by TikTok post with Thai-language caption · social media

The facts

AFP traced the footage to a pro-government 'Solidarity March' on 18 June 2025, led by Deputy Prime Minister Hun Many, which drew tens of thousands of people in support of the government and troops at the border. The clip matches AFP's own video of that rally. The misleading TikTok post of 1 August 2025 had more than 330,000 views.

Fact check: AFP via Cambodianess

What is circulating

“Videos show Thailand using 'toxic smoke' on Cambodia during the July 2025 border conflict, described in the posts as genocide.”

Claimed by Facebook users · social media

The facts

AAP FactCheck found the videos show South Korea's Black Eagles aerobatic team at the Langkawi air show in Malaysia, matching a 2023 upload, while an accompanying forest-fire photo was a 2019 image from Brazil. A Cambodian Defence Ministry spokesperson alleged on 28 July 2025 that Thailand used chemical weapons, which Thailand's Foreign Ministry denied, but these videos are not evidence of it.

Fact check: AAP FactCheck

What is circulating

“Minister Chee Hong Tat announced the government would fund the attraction of mainland Chinese to Singapore and groom them for leadership, using public money to nurture leaders only from the Chinese race.”

Claimed by TikTok user · social media

The facts

The Chinese Community Leadership Course is run by the Federation of Chinese Clan Associations and the Chinese Chamber of Commerce with government funding, and only active Singapore citizens are eligible, not foreigners. The government also supports leadership programmes for other communities, including Yayasan MENDAKI's 18-month Tunas Bersama M3 and the SINDA Young Leaders Programme. A POFMA correction direction was issued on 7 September 2025 over the TikTok video of 26 August.

Fact check: Factually (Gov.sg)

What is circulating

“Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim told the Dewan Rakyat in August 2025 that opposition leader Muhyiddin Yassin had questioned the government for burdening foreigners by denying them the targeted RON95 petrol subsidy.”

Claimed by Anwar Ibrahim · official statement · Where it was said

The facts

Muhyiddin called the claim a lie and asked for proof, and no record of him making the statement has been published. Anwar asked the communications regulator MCMC to verify his sources, said on 14 August 2025 that one of three had already been found inaccurate, and promised to apologise if the rest proved false. As of 9 September 2025 MCMC had sent initial findings on a TikTok video to the deputy public prosecutor and was still awaiting data from TikTok.

Fact check: Malay Mail ·

What is circulating

“Amid the 2025 mid-decade redistricting fight, California Governor Gavin Newsom said on a podcast on 17 August 2025: "Democrats have voted for national independent redistricting. Republicans have not."”

Claimed by Gavin Newsom · official statement

The facts

PolitiFact rated the claim Mostly True. In 2021 all House Democrats but one voted for H.R. 1, which would have required independent redistricting commissions, and every Republican present voted against it. However, redistricting was one part of an 884 page bill, and some Republicans have backed independent commissions at the state level, as in Idaho, New York and Colorado.

Fact check: PolitiFact

What is circulating

“In a speech in Peachtree City, Georgia, on 21 August 2025, Vance said of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act: "We had the biggest tax cut for families that this country has ever seen."”

Claimed by JD Vance · official statement

The facts

PolitiFact rated the claim Mostly False. Measured as five-year tax cuts relative to GDP, Reagan's 1981 law ranks first at 3.5 percent and a 2012 extension ranks second at 1.7 percent, with the 2025 law third at 1.4 percent. Counting only its new provisions rather than the extension of the 2017 cuts, the 2025 law falls to 0.5 percent of GDP, tied for sixth.

Fact check: PolitiFact

What is circulating

“After Ahmad Sahroni's home was looted, Prabowo asked the public to loot the homes of Bahlil, Eko Patrio, Sri Mulyani and Uya Kuya.”

Claimed by Social media users · social media

The facts

The poster misused a Warta Ekonomi photo posted on 30 August 2025 whose caption said Prabowo called for calm amid protests over new DPR allowances of Rp50 million a month. No credible report shows Prabowo urging looting.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“A video shows Pati Regent Sudewo promoting an online gambling site.”

Claimed by Social media users · social media

The facts

The original footage, posted by iNews TV on 6 August 2025, shows Sudewo discussing his decision to raise the PBB-P2 property tax by up to 250 percent and saying he was not afraid of protests; he did not mention gambling. Hive Moderation rated the circulating video 95.7 percent likely to be AI-generated.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“A video shows Prabowo going down to meet students protesting outside the DPR building on 25 August 2025.”

Claimed by Social media users · social media

The facts

Clips in the video come from other events, including Prabowo's visit to SDN 05 Cimahpar in Bogor on 2 May 2025 for National Education Day. There was no valid report of Prabowo meeting the protesters, who were objecting to DPR members' pay and allowances.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“An Antara news report says Prabowo proposed that the UN hold a referendum in Aceh and Papua.”

Claimed by Social media users · social media

The facts

The fake report reused an Antara photo of Prabowo meeting UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the G20 in Brazil on 17 November 2024, where they discussed peacekeeping, and a 2019 UN video of Guterres speaking about mental health. Neither source mentions a referendum.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“A video shows the home of House Speaker Puan Maharani being looted and burned by a mob on 31 August 2025.”

Claimed by Social media users · social media

The facts

The footage shows protesters climbing the fence of the Malang city council (DPRD) building during an earlier protest against the omnibus law, not Puan's house. While the homes of several DPR members were looted in late August 2025, there was no valid report of Puan's home being looted or burned as of 1 September 2025.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta

What is circulating

“"Today the national unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest level since the 1998 crisis," Prabowo said in his 15 August 2025 state address.”

Claimed by Prabowo Subianto, President · official statement

The facts

BPS put the open unemployment rate at 4.76 percent in February 2025, down from 4.82 percent a year earlier and the lowest in the BPS series since 1998. Economists noted other pressure points: 42,385 workers were laid off in January to June 2025, 32.19 percent more than a year earlier, and 59.40 percent of workers were informal.

Fact check: Kompas.com Cek Fakta