Politics
Presidency goofs, falsely accuses VDM over ‘Tinubu audio’
FINDINGS have shown that the Presidency goofed after threatening social media commentator Martins Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), over a manipulated audio clip falsely attributed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The controversial doctored audio the Presidency was referring to was not part of original video posted by VDM.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, had on Wednesday called for the activist’s prosecution, accusing him of disseminating fake audio linked to the president.
“This VDM needs to face the weight of the law for being the conveyor and disseminator of a fake audio of President Tinubu. This is a clear case of an egregious abuse of the social media platform,” Onanuga wrote on his verified X account.
The presidential aide was reacting to a viral clip circulating online in which AI-generated voice notes resembling Tinubu’s voice made controversial remarks about insecurity in the South-East, opposition parties, borrowing from the World Bank, and the 2027 general election.
The video was shared by an X user, @Pious_minister, who alleged that the doctored audio of the President was used in one of VDM’s videos.
“How do you really convince someone who has already decided and believes in their mind that this is actually Asiwaju’s voice? What kind of cheap propaganda is this?
“VDM knows that Ibos are highly emotional people, and that’s why he enjoys riding on their emotions,” the user wrote.
However, checks by The FactCheckHub show that the viral clip did not originate from VDM’s original upload.
FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the video in circulation is a manipulated version of Instagram video posted by VDM on Tuesday, May 26.
In the original footage, the activist was reacting to comments made by content creator and philanthropist Mitchell “King Mitchy” Mukoro, who had alleged that his necklace was a charm and claimed he visited a shrine.
Responding, VDM played an old campaign clip of Tinubu speaking about electricity and governance ahead of the 2023 presidential election.
In the original campaign footage aired by TVC News, Tinubu had said Nigerians should not vote for him for a second term if he failed to improve electricity supply.
“Whichever way, by all means necessary, you must have electricity, and you won’t pay for estimated bills anymore. A promise made will be a promise kept. If I don’t keep my promise and I run for a second term, don’t vote for me. That’s the truth,” Tinubu said in the original clip.
However, findings show that an unidentified individual later extracted portions of VDM’s original video and inserted a doctored voice note resembling the president’s voice.
The edited clip retained the opening section of VDM’s original video before switching to the fabricated audio, creating the false impression that the activist shared or endorsed the recordings himself.
The manipulated version subsequently circulated widely on social media and appeared to have prompted Onanuga’s call for VDM’s prosecution.
VDM blasts Presidency
Reacting in a video posted on his social media page, VDM lampooned Onanuga, insisting that he would not defend the controversial AI-generated clip.
The activist criticised the Presidency for reacting swiftly to the manipulated audio while allegedly remaining silent over recent insecurity incidents, including the abduction of teachers and pupils in Oyo State.
“Bandits went into a school in Oyo State, they carried three teachers, one man, two women, they carried students. One of the teachers was backing an infant child. Few days later, there was a report that one of the teachers was beheaded. Bayo Onanuga, where is your comment on that?”
“As I speak to you today, it is Children’s Day. Those children are still in an unknown location. I want to see wetin una wan do. It’s only stupid people that will believe that video,” he wrote.
VDM’s lawyers faults Presidency’s verification process
Reacting to the accusation, VDM’s lawyers, Deji Adeyanju & Partners, accused the Presidency of failing to verify the authenticity and origin of the manipulated clip before publicly attacking their client.
“A simple verification of our client’s verified social media platforms would have confirmed that he neither made nor shared the said audio,” the lawyers stated.
They further described the Presidency’s comments as premature and unsupported by evidence.
“It is therefore surprising that, despite the resources available to the Presidency, adverse comments were made concerning our client without proper verification of the facts,” the team added.
The lawyers called on security agencies to investigate the actual source of the doctored audio and identify those responsible for creating and circulating it.
This report is co-published with FactCheckHub
Nurudeen Akewushola is an investigative reporter and fact-checker with The ICIR. He believes courageous in-depth investigative reporting is the key to social justice, accountability and good governance in society. You can reach him via nyahaya@icirnigeria.org and @NurudeenAkewus1 on Twitter.