My picture as election observer in Ekiti election AI generated — Edo APC Chair

Jarret Tenebe, the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State, has vehemently denied appearing as an accredited election observer during the Ekiti gubernatorial election, asserting that a widely circulated image of him in an observer jacket is a product of artificial intelligence.

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We have a forum of APC State Chairmen all over the country, and we all agreed that in any stand-alone election, we have to give support to our fellow chairmen in that election. That was how I got to Ekiti, not to monitor elections or whatever.

Tenebe clarified his presence in Ekiti during an interview, explaining that he was there as part of a forum of APC state chairmen who agreed to support colleagues during off-cycle elections. He emphasized that he was never accredited by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as an observer and has never held such accreditation. He accused political opponents of using AI to create misleading images for political drama, citing former lawmaker Dino Melaye as one of the first to share the manipulated picture.

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So what you saw on the internet is a creation of AI. And you know that these opposition people, they know how to do that a lot. So I think it was AI. It was not me.

The Ekiti State governorship election, held on June 20, 2026, saw the incumbent governor, Biodun Oyebanji of the APC, declared the winner by INEC. Tenebe's statement addresses the controversy surrounding the viral image, highlighting concerns about the misuse of AI in political contexts and its potential to cause public confusion.

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I was never accredited, and I have never been accredited. It’s clear AI, and they are fond of doing it, and they will continue to do it. And AI is going to cause problems for everybody in this country.